Pre-race gallery: Santos Tour Down Under

Landing in Adelaide on Saturday 11 January, UAE Team Emirates-XRG enjoyed a week of preparation in South Australia ahead of the first race of the season, the Villawood Men’s Classic. Raced around the East End of Adelaide, in an ode to the 1999 Tour Down Under, the hour-long criterium saw Rui Oliveira place highest for the team in seventh place on Saturday evening.

For the week prior, there were plenty of opportunities for the team – made up of Rune Herregodts, Julius Johansen, Jhonatan Narváez, Oliveira, Marc Soler, Pablo Torres and Jay Vine – to explore the local roads and get a taste of what is to come in the Santos Tour Down Under.

Between kangaroo sightings, café stops by the beach, and the many kilometres spent fine-tuning their form ahead of the race, UAE Team Emirates-XRG videographer Filippo Barcatta was along for the ride. Capturing the week of preparation from inside the team, he had unparalleled access to the riders as they built towards the first WorldTour race of the season.

The only thing that is left to do now is to go racing. See you out on the roads.