Larry Warbasse began his fifth season with A2GR Citroën just days ago in Marseille, France and said it is a big year for the team but also for him. It’s a contract year for the Michigan native, who now calls France home, so Warbasse is on the hunt for an aggressive start. You could say he may be upping the intensity, much like the ferocious wolverine mascot of his college alma mater at the University of Michigan.
But while the nasty wolverine is a lone predator, Warbasse is all about teamwork. He’s been on the international level of pro cycling for 11 years, all but two of those seasons on the WorldTour level. His two biggest individual achievements on the results tally came in 2017 when he won a stage at the Tour de Suisse and then was crowned US road race national champion.
Now five years on, Warbasse is spurred on to help his team improve from a ranking as the 16th best team in the rankings and help leaders Benoit Cosnefroy, Greg Van Avermaet and Oliver Naesen to more success. His demeanor isn’t about personal glory.
“It’s an important year for the team. It’s the first year of this new cycle of points and everything, so a lot of changes in cycling this year. So for us, it’s really important to get off to a good start,” Warbass told Cyclingnews.
“Guys like Greg [Van Avermaet] and Oliver [Naesen], they haven’t had as good as seasons as they were hoping for the last couple of years. For a lot of guys on the team, it’s a contract year. I’ve seen a lot of really motivated guys this training camp, and I think it’s going to be a good year. So I’m excited to see what we can do for the year.”
The Michigan native lives full-time in Nice, France and said he had a solid winter of training, which included a five-day trip riding on the largest Greek island, Crete. Warbasse started the season this week at Grand Prix Cycliste de Marseille and will line up at Etoile de Bessèges along with heavy hitters Van Avermaet, Oliver Naesen and Cosnefroy.
He then gets a true “home race” at Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var, Feb. 17-19, where “the last stage goes past my apartment,” and with a few more races scattered in the spring, will focus on Paris-Nice and the Giro d’Italia.
“Paris-Nice is the first big objective of the season. I’m looking forward to that,” he told Cyclingnews. “And then I’ll do Sanremo and the Giro for the first part of the year. My first five months of racing are pretty jam-packed. I might do all the Ardennes with…
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