Formolo interview Rouleur

The protégé

He has a protégé already. Davide Formolo, the new darling of Italian cycling, following a victory gained by sheer panache on stage four of this year’s Giro. I spoke to Formolo a few weeks later and when Basso’s name cropped up, the younger man was fulsome in his praise for the rider who mentored him last season. The veteran is similarly effusive.

“If the day comes when I decide the list of riders to buy and keep in my team,” Basso says, only half-joking, “his will be the first name.

“In cycling, we have a lot of good riders. You can train, you can gain a lot of effect – power, threshold, everything – but the difference, you make with this,” he continues, tapping his temple. “He is very strong. He knows very well the sacrifice required. He knows very well how hard you have to work.

“When I go to a training camp, I see very well who is a bike rider and who is a bike racer. That is very easy,” Basso concludes, leaving little doubt that Formolo is the latter.