For years, Michael Albasini has been riding at a consistently high level. That was also the case in 2014 when the Swiss won four races and numerous top results. “Overall I am quite pleased with my season,” Albasini told radsport-news.com.

However, the Swiss had to get through a difficult phase in the first part of the season. “I had a few problems due to bronchitis,” said Albasini who was still able to take his first top 10 result early in the year when he was seventh in the Trofeo Platja de Muro in Mallorca.

The all-rounder first made the world aware of himself in the Ardennes classics in April when he finished seventh in Fleche Wallonne. In Liege-Bastogne-Liege, Albasini was not much in the spotlight but he was an important domestique for his teammate Simon Gerrans who ultimately won the race. “It was great to win the race with Simon,” Albasini said about his share in the Australian’s victory.

Albasini’s moment of glory came a little later. At his home race, the Tour de Romandie, he won three stages and also wore the leader’s jersey for a day. “With that triple, I could do more than just polish my spring balance. Those three victories were definitely very special to me,” said Albasini who took more important top results in his home country in the following weeks.

He finished fifth in the GP Kanton Aargau, was second in the second stage of the Tour de Suisse and was also second in the Swiss road race championships. However, he was not satisfied with the latter result. “I lost the championships,” said Albasini who was beaten by Martin Elmiger (IAM) in the sprint.

He then went to the Tour de France where he finished in the top 10 on four stages. The fourth place in stage 12 was his best result in the 101st edition of the race. “I delivered some good performances in the Tour de Suisse and the Tour de France but I was missing a win,” the former Swiss junior champion said about his summer.

Things went better in the autumn. In the Italian one-day race Tre Valli Varesine, he took his fourth win of the season and confirmed this result with a sixth place in Il Lombardia, the final WorldTour classics of the season. “I had a strong autumn season and could even add a nice race to my palmares,” said Albasini who also played a big role in Simon Gerrans’ victories in the Canadian WorldTour races in Quebec and Montreal.

The only disappointment in the second half of the season was his performance at the World Championships where he could only manage 66th. “I wasted my form,” he said.

His goals for next season which will be his fourth with Orica-GreenEDGE, are very simple. “As always, I want to win as many races as possible – with the team or myself.”