Max Knox and Leo Paez will be backed up by all-Italian duo Mirko Pirazzoli and Alessandro Gambino when the Cape Epic kicks off on March 19.
Knox raced two Cape Epics (2012, 2013) as back-up team rider to the Christoph Sauser (five wins and 36 stage victories), as well as the late Burry Stander, the only South African to have won the coveted title.
Now it’s Knox’s turn to be the rider going for the glory as he pairs up with Colombian racer Paez in Team Kansai Plascon.
Kansai Plascon 2 will offer them all the on-the-bike support they need during the demanding seven-day race.
Alessandro Gambino (left) and Mirko Pirazzoli (Team Kansai Plascon 2) will be the back-up team to Team Kansai Plascon 1’s Max Knox and Leo Paez who will be hunting for podium finishes at the 2017 Cape Epic. Photo: Supplied
Pirazzoli and Gambino will spend every moment of every stage thinking about how they can assist their number one team to challenge for victory, whether it’s stage wins or the overall title.
They are both members of the Italian-based FRM Factory Racing Team. Gambino has done some marathon racing in recent years, but his roots lie in XCO and Cyclocross.
A member of the Italian national Cyclocross team from 2001 to 2012, Gambino racked up a number of successes in this discipline, including a bronze medal at the 2009 Italian championships and 10 victories at international events.
In XCO he has finished on the podium four times at the Italian national championships and has competed internationally since 2002.
Since starting the longer marathon distance races in 2014, Gambino has had a number of top 25 finishes at UCI Marathon Series events and top 20 finishes at other European marathons.
He won the 2014 Via del Sale and was second in 2015 and 2016 at the Etna Challenge Marathon, as well as fourth at both of last year’s editions of the Assietaa Legend and Ortler Bike Marathon.
Pirazzoli has been racing since 1996, making him one of the oldest UCI Elite category racers in the world. He was a regular top 20 finisher in XCO World Cups from 2000 to 2010 and a member of the Italian national team from 2001 to 2010, during which time he finished on the national champs podium seven times.
“Getting myself and Leo to the finish line as fast as possible each day is the Kansai Plascon squad’s priority. Having a strong back-up team has become almost the norm in the past few years for any team with victory as an objective,” said Knox.
