BURY cycling stars Simon and Adam Yates will face a stern examination of their talents in 2015. Both enjoyed tremendous debut professional seasons in 2014 and, as such, expectations for the coming year are high.

The twin brothers both race for Australian outfit Orica GreenEdge, where, they have been able to race for themselves rather than slogging for team-mates as might have been the case at Manchester based Team Sky.

Simon, first into the world (by a matter of minutes) was also first to get a shot at a Grand Tour in 2014. He rode valiantly at the Tour de France, participating in two break-aways and earning the plaudits of his team director Matt White.

Two months later Adam rode the entirety of the Vuelta a Espana.

Ahead of their race schedules being announced [AS OF 07/01], The Bury Times has identified five potential targets for Adam and Simon Yates as they enter their second season as ‘neo-pros’:

A top-five finish at Liège-Batston-Liège or La Flèche Wallonne

Of all of the Spring ‘classics’, these two offer climbers Simon and Adam have the best chance of a high-placed finish.

La Flèche Wallonne features a three-lap circuit around the steep Mur de Huy. Sections approaching 26% should suit the Yates’ climbing legs. Liège-Bastogne-Liège features similarly steep climbs towards its end.

A general classificaition win

An overall win might sound like a big ask for a pair of 22-year-olds but the Yates have proven they can compete and hold onto leaders’ jerseys.

Adam won the Tour of Turkey in May and Simon finished 12th against a world class field at the Tour of the Basque County.

Paris-Nice, the Tour of California and the Giro del Trentino are potential targets.

A Tour de France stage win

It would be a surprise if neither were selected to race in cycling’s most prestigious race. Simon has explicitly said that he is targeting a stage win there.

He said: “The 2015 route is also quite hilly and should suit me, and there are potentially plenty of opportunities to go for stage wins. I actually wasn’t a million miles away when I got into a couple of breakaways at this year’s Tour, so I know that there will be chances for a rider like myself”

Top-five finish at Classica San Sebastaian

Adam crashed here last August whilst in a leading group with only 3.5km of racing remaining. The steep profile of the race suits either he or Simon and one of them will surely contest this climbers’ race.

Time trialling

If in years to come, the Yates twins are to compete for overall victories in Grand Tours, they will have to improve on their time trialling. It will be intriguing to see how they fair against the clock this year.