Maurizio Fondriest on Conquering Sanremo

Maurizio Fondriest is, in his own words, one of the few riders from his generation who had the explosive characteristics necessary to challenge the hegemony of the sprinters at Milano – Sanremo. With his two second places, fourth place and legendary 1993 victory, Fondriest was the Mr Sanremo of his generation. We sat down and asked him about his victory, the mistakes that cost him victory two other times, secrets of the race and what advice he’d like to give our very own Tom Pidcock on how to win Sanremo this Saturday…

You won Sanremo in 1993, you came second in ’88 and ’95 and had a handful of other great results at Sanremo. What does this say about the kind of rider you were?

Well it was a race that was very well suited to my characteristics, I was a very fast finisher but not a sprinter and I had a brutal enough acceleration that I could count myself amongst the few riders who could drop the whole peloton on the Poggio and ride away alone.

On the start line on the morning of the race in 1993 did you feel like you had the form to win? Had you already visualized the victory?

I’d won Tirreno-Adriatico the week before so I knew I was strong but then something happened that morning which gave me a strange feeling, a feeling I’d never had before and never managed to capture again in my career: I received the news that my first daughter had just been born. I arrived on the startline with a feeling of superiority and bravado that wasn’t usually part of my personality.

Was there a point in the race where you thought ‘I’m feeling great, I can win today’?

Like I said I had a strange feeling during the race, a feeling I never had again in my career, a kind of lightness. For example at a certain point there was a road block for a protest and we were diverted onto the highway and even then I never lost my concentration. I knew it would be hard to win: it would be impossible to reach the top of the Poggio with more than 5-6 seconds of advantage and at best I could grab a handful more on the descent. But I felt confident, superior.

Where there mistakes that you had learned from in previous editions of the race? What were the tactical “secrets” you had learned from coming second in 88, for example?

Not really. My tactics were always the same: ride the climbs before the Poggio at the front but never make a move. I knew that to make a move on the Poggio I had to be as fresh as possible because any previous effort would take something away from me in the final actions of the race. In ’93 I played my cards in exactly the same way as ’88 and ’95.
In ’88, when I was outsprinted by Laurent Fignon and lost because of a lack of experience. I was a neopro, he’d won the tour two times: I could have easily just sat on his wheel for the sprint. But instead I was convinced that I could win, so I rode on the front and lost. But it was the lesson of that loss that allowed me to win the worlds later that year…

How would you describe the difference in the rider characteristics needed to win the race in 1993 compared to today? Did the race suit an attack on the Poggio more in your time? Or less?

I think its the same. There are always just two roads to victory: either you are a sprinter who can hold on a bit on short climbs of about 6 minutes, riding above your threshold, after which all you have to do is sprint. Or else you are an extremely explosive rider, like Saronni, Bettini, Alaphilippe, Pogacar, Van der Poel or Tom Pidcock. These are riders who have a vicious change of rhythm and can treat the Poggio like a 500-600m uphill sprint.
To attack earlier than the Poggio you need very particular weather conditions, like when Bugno won in 1990. Maybe there exists a last option which is only available to you if you are not amongst the favourites and that is to attack at the base of the Poggio after the descent, like Stuyven in ’21…

Do you think it is possible to win the race without a strong team?

Yes, I do. The race is always decided on the Poggio so all you need your team to do is get you to the front before the Poggio. If you have a strong team, like Pogacar, maybe you can set a very high rhythm both on the Cipressa and Poggio, but in the end let’s say Pogacar attacks, Van der Poel and Pidcock follow him and all Pogacar’s team has done is make the race for whoever has got the legs… So no, you don’t need a strong team to win Sanremo.

Were there any other years where you had better legs than 1993 but luck or fate made victory impossible?

In ’91 I was very strong but the roads were wet and in Imperia I fell. I imanaged to get back to the group after the Cipressa but I had to ride like I was pulling for somebody. I reached the foot of Poggio at the front but at Sanremo you can’t permit yourself to make any extra effort before the Poggio…

What makes it so difficult to win more than once (since 2010 no rider has won it twice) today?

Above all it’s a question of epochs. In the 2000s you didn’t have many riders with the kind of characteristics needed to win it from an attack on the Poggio so there were a lot of teams that were racing for it to end in a sprint which lent a lot more consistency in results. Today you have many riders with the characteristics needed to win it with an attack on the Poggio so you have teams that want to make it extra hard. Also in general it is the easiest of the classics in terms of climbing which makes it harder to win because there is less of a selection.

What are three characteristics needed to win Sanremo?

Fast finish. Excellent descending skills. Big change of rhythm uphill.

And last question: what advice would you like to give Tom Pidcock on how to win Sanremo this year?

I haven’t yet met Tom personally but I’ve seen him race, not just on road but also MTB and cyclocross. Being the lighter ride in terms of weight amongst the favourites what he certainly shouldn’t do is attack first on the Poggio. He could, for example, keep Pogacar’s wheel, maybe with 3 or 4 other riders, and go over the Poggio first and try to do something on the descent… But in general my advice to him would be to “be the last to make your move, do not attack before Van der Poel or Pogacar have attacked”.

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