02 Feb SCOTT CALA BANDIDA TEAM PODIUM IN THE LEGEND OF TARTESSOS
Team Chronicle of Scott Cala Bandida, ISB SPORT Ambassador
The Scott Cala Bandida team, ambassador of the ISB SPORT bearing brand, achieved a stage victory, great feelings, and an unexpected setback that hasn’t dampened the team’s ambition for the season ahead.
SCOTT Cala Bandida kicked off the season at La Leyenda de Tartessos, the first major event on the XCM calendar, with maximum motivation and the enthusiasm to start the year competing at the highest level. The race in Huelva provided the ideal setting to gauge the team’s form.
The debut couldn’t have been better. José Mari Sánchez teamed up with Alberto Barroso, the team’s new signing, and together they delivered an outstanding performance in the opening time trial, achieving the stage victory and the best overall time of all the teams. An unbeatable start that confirmed the excellent feelings and raised high expectations for the remaining stages.
However, luck turned against them in the second stage. When the pair were leading the race, José Mari Sánchez suffered a hard fall after his front wheel got stuck in a muddy patch and he was thrown off. The impact forced the team to withdraw immediately.
Subsequent medical tests confirmed two broken ribs, which will keep the Andalusian rider out of competition for some time. Despite this setback, the team’s overall assessment is positive. The performance during the race was very strong and reinforces confidence in the work done during the preseason.
It’s only the beginning of the year, and the team faces this setback with the conviction that the season is long and there is time to recover and come back stronger. Both Alberto Barroso, who completed the race solo, riding on terrain he knows perfectly since Huelva is his home and main training ground, and Enrique Morcillo, who also started in Tartessos with the aim of racking up kilometers and testing himself without competitive pressure, are eager for the team’s next big objective: the SCOTT Mediterranean Epic MTB, which kicks off on Thursday, February 5th. Four days of pure XCM in one of the most important stage races in the world in its discipline. A new opportunity to continue growing, learning, and demonstrating the potential of SCOTT Cala Bandida in this exciting start to the season.
