So it fits into the picture that this time he is “not in absolute top form” at the Giro start, which this time takes place in the Hungarian capital Budapest. Buchmann caught bronchitis after the Tour of the Basque Country. “But if everything goes well, then hopefully the form will be right in the third week, and that’s where the decision will be made,” said the Bora-hansgrohe driver.
The last Giro week was “brutally difficult” and therefore entirely to his liking. In any case, the Giro has it all with more than 50,000 meters of altitude difference. The decision to prefer the Giro to the Tour was not difficult. “With Denmark and northern France and a stage on cobblestones, the risk of falls would be enormous again,” explains the 29-year-old, looking at the profile of the France loop.
Strong tour team
His team has not lost confidence in Buchmann. “Of course we trust him with a top placement. He’s always good for a place among the best. Anyone who finishes fourth in the Tour de France can of course also play a very good role in the Giro,” says team boss Ralph Denk, who is with a strong round driver team at the start. In addition to Buchmann, the two teammates Jai Hindley and Wilco Kelderman proved with their second and third place at the Giro 2020 that they can drive to the front.
And then there is Lennard Kämna. The highly talented Tour stage winner of 2020 is an important helper on the one hand, but also gets his freedom. “I definitely want to go hunting for stages again, so try to win a stage,” announced Kämna in the “Weser-Kurier”.
It is quite realistic that a driver from the Bora team will end up on the podium. Because the two Slovenian stars Tadej Pogacar (Tour winner 2020 and 2021) and Primoz Roglic (Vuelta champion 2019 to 2021) are concentrating on the tour, the Colombian winner of the previous year, Egan Bernal, is not ready after his serious fall in winter. Possibly the chance for Buchmann if he doesn’t fall again.