At some point, after many placings and no victories, Luca Mozzato's mind has started to make its way the doubt of not being a winnerHis last success dates back to the 2019 Circuito del Porto, when he outsprinted Gomez, who was racing for Colpack at the time, and others who are still struggling to earn their place in the sun.
In the meantime, professionalism has arrived for him and with the leap in quality, an infinite number of placings in the classic half marathons of the North and in the stages of the Tour: in two years of the Grande Boucle, the rider from Vicenza finished in the top ten six times, but there was no mention of victories. Instead yesterday in Trelissac the moon turned in the right direction and Luca won the second stage at Tour of LimousinIt may not be the Tour or even the Roubaix, but nothing like victory can make the effort worthwhile. And so, while we usually called him to tell him about his projects, the placings and successes of others, This time the protagonist is him: Mozzato Luca from Arzignano, 25 years old, professional since 2020.
You hadn't won for four years, it took consistency...
First of all, I have to thank the team. It seems like a trivial thing that everyone says, but... Today (yesterday, ed.) they started working very far from the finish line. We're talking about 150 kilometers. When you have a leader who guarantees victory, it's a little easier. But in my case, you know, the case of a rider who's never won... Doing that kind of work is because you are expected to win.They trusted me, it wasn't something I could take for granted.
Did you leave to run for yourself?
My classmates believed in it almost more than I did. They started working, keeping the escape within rangeBut the kilometers passed and going to get them was not easy. We managed it in the final and at that point the arrival helped me, because it was neither too hard nor all flat. Eventually my legs came out and I found the right moment to leave, because I was in pretty good shape anyway.
What was the right time?
At 300 I saw in front of me that cosnefroy and Askey touched each other a bit and lost momentum. So I decided to leave quite long, given the type of arrival. That was the right time.
Why do you think they decided to run for you?
They are came out well from Tour and they decided to trust me. However, there aren't many "calibre" sprinters here, so, looking at the field, they thought that maybe we had the winning manAnd they must have thought: let's try to put him in a position to compete in the race.
How much lighter are you tonight?
Enough, also because anyway This first victory never became an obsession, but it was starting to feel like a long time since I had won. And from my point of view, I also had to try to understand what kind of rider I am. Being a rider who runs the race and doesn't win isn't exactly the best.I'm not that young anymore, but I still gave myself a couple of years to see what kind of rider I could be. And in this couple of years I wanted to try to play my cards and now this victory helps.
Do you think your high placings at the Tour were due to confidence or to comparisons with stronger riders?
I always thought that it comes easier to me place myself in a challenging race, where the level is as high as at the Tour, rather than winning lower-level races. And now, talking about lower-level races... There aren't any anymore, but it's easier for me to pull off fifth or sixth place in a race where there are some phenomenal riders, rather than winning three or four races in a lesser field.
Why?
Because I'm a fast rider, but not a very fast one. So I don't outperform all sprinters and I'm that middle ground that allows me to explore many types of races, especially the classics, even if this hasn't allowed me to be a winner so far.
Do you think this victory can give something in terms of conviction?
Certainly. And it can make the difference especially with opponents, who maybe now want to come to my wheel: This makes a big difference.
How did you know you came out of the Tour well?
I felt like I had finished it and wasn't quite done. I was tired like everyone else, but it was a positive tiredness, a good tiredness.I wasn't in a situation where I didn't want to get out of bed for three days. I mean, I was still relatively well, so After 2-3 days of recovery, the sensations on the bike were immediately good.
Next steps?
Tomorrow (today, ed.) we'll arrive uphill. It's not a mountain pass, but it's definitely too tough. Instead on the Limoges circuit we can talk about it again, because maybe many arrive and the race is playable. The problem is always understand if the group is able to compete in the race and if I will still be in the group.
The team will be motivated to try too, right?
Certainly, though The Limousin is a particularly difficult race to control, so even if there is the will, then you need to have the legs and a favorable situation.
Last thing: Albanese is coming next year: do you think he'll fit in well?
I don't know what they expect, but they've got a good rider. Albanese is strong in sprints and passes the climbs. For the calendar they do here in France, it can be very useful. So in addition to all the WorldTour races he will do and which he has never done until now, adds potential to the entire team.
What if someone had told you this morning that you were going to win your first race?
I would have hoped for it, or believed it, I don't know. Let's just say there were a series of factors that could have made me believe I'd come close. But when you've never won, it's hard to understand what the right day is.But it went well, I'm happy. I'm really happy.
