‘The last bullet’. It is the title that has accompanied Alexander Valverde in this season in all the races in which he has been, since at the end of the 2022 course the Murcian will end his career in professional cycling. And goodbye, although it is hard to believe, will come next Saturday at the Giro de Lombardia, last stop for a living legend of cycling whose legacy will be eternal. And how could it be otherwise, beyond the emotional charge that such an event will have, in which it should be remembered that Vincenzo Nibali will also retire, Bala won’t exactly go for a walk…
After concluding his preparation for the last monument of the year with excellent feelings, thanks to his third place in the Three Valleys of Vares (he was also 2nd in the Coppa Agostoni and 4th in the Giro de Emilia), the Movistar rider was ambitious before the Eurosport microphones in order to achieve a great result in what will be his farewell race: “Now, Lombardy on Saturday. If all goes well, I think I’m one of the favorites; then, the race, the state of form that day, that you feel good… it may vary, but today, I’m good to fight for the race. If I’m fine, I like the 2022 route more than other years.”
On Italian territory, the Murcian will be accompanied again by Enric Mas, with whom he already formed a sensational duo in Emilia for the Balearic to win. Their joint work could be key to the success of a Movistar team that is launching into a final stretch of the course in which they not only comfortably managed to remain, but also rose to 13th place in the UCI ranking: “Today I told Enric that he also try his options, and in the end we have reached the sprint. Enric and Einer (Rubio) have finished doing a great job in the final part; It only remains to congratulate Pogacar, who was faster than me. I have to be super happy; the other day I was second, on Saturday I was fourth with Enric’s victory, today I was third… We have to be very happy with my last races”. It only remains to put the icing…