color:windowtext">The main rivals of the "Scott-Sram MTB-Racing" team led by Lars Forster and Nino Schurter in 2019 were Manuel Fumic and Henrique Avancini. The duo from "Cannondale Factory Racing" are once again considered the most dangerous opponents for overall victory this year.
color:windowtext">As the saying goes: when two quarrel, the third rejoices. The third, favoured team "Ninety One - Songo - Specialized" with Howard Grotts and Jaroslav Kulhavy also has nothing to hide. The little American won the Cape Epic two years ago together with the Czech diesel locomotive.

color:windowtext">The defending champions should also have the Bulls Heroes and Bulls Legends teams on their radar, as they have too much experience of a successful performance at the Cape Epic. Swiss rider Urs Huber will once again be riding with his German team colleague Simon Stiebjahn. Together they won the four-day Tankwa Trek stage race near Cape Town. Perhaps more importantly for the team as a whole, Martin Frey and Simon Schneller were invaluable to the Bulls Heroes' victory. The German team can also draw on the experience of Karl Platt and Alban Lakata.

color:windowtext">Backup teams - the secret favourites

color:windowtext">Like the Bulls Heroes, the other favoured pairings can count on strong backup teams. Andri Frischknecht and Matthias Stirnemann as well as Florian Chenaux and Severin Disch will try their best for Forster and Schurter, while Christoph Sauser and Wessel Botha as well as Team "Ninety One Specialized Trinity" with Tom Pidcock and Florian Vogel will keep the backs of Grotts and Kulhavy free.

color:windowtext">However, these teams themselves have winning qualities. Matthias Stirnemann himself has already won with Nino Schurter, Andri Frischknecht with Michiel van der Hejiden, and Karl Platt has often topped the podium at the Cape Epic. But Florian Vogel and Tom Pidcock could suddenly also be in the running for victory. This should make the 2020 edition of the Cape Epic even more exciting.
color:windowtext">The role of the troublemakers could be blamed on the Italian Trek-Pirelli team. Samuele Porro and Damiano Ferraro were third in 2019. Their teammates Fabian Rabensteiner and Michele Casagrande also won the sister event Swiss Epic. With David Valero Serrano and Nadir Colledani from the MMR Factory Racing Team and Frans Claes and Soren Nissen from the Devonbosch Pro Team, there are two more international teams to watch at the start.

color:windowtext">Langvad chases next victory

color:windowtext">Dane Annika Langvad has the most Cape Epic victories among the women and the chances of another one are certainly high. Her partner is Olympic champion Jenny Rissveds, who last competed in the Cape Epic in 2017 alongside Thomas Frischknecht in the mixed team. However, the favorites from the "31: Outride" team will not be riding for free in this race either. Especially as there are some strong pairings among the competitors.

color:windowtext">The following teams are among the strongest pairings: Dutch rider Anne Terpstra and Hungarian rider Barbara Benko from Team Ghost are an uneven pairing on paper and have no Cape Epic experience. At the most important mountain bike stage race in the world, the two are among the favorites at the start, provided they can make up for their lack of experience with smart riding.
color:windowtext">The South Africans Candice Lill and Mariske Strauss (Faces CST) are likely to be the most uncomfortable for the top favorites in the battle for the overall classification. The Fairtree team of Nadine Rieder and Jennie Stenerhag and the Dormakaba Blue team of Robyn de Groot and Adelheid Morath are on a similar level.
Team Andermatt Spur with Ariane Lüthi and Alice Pirard will also be in contention for a podium place. Lüthi has won the Cape Epic three times with Annika Langvad, but has lacked a bit of racing luck in previous editions.

www.cape-epic.com

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