Giro d'Italia race director Mauro Veni was pleased to confirm that Peter Sagan will compete in the 2020 Corsa Rosa, but experienced Italian race organizers know that Tour de France winners Egan Bernal and know they face an uphill battle to attract riders like Geraint Thomas.

He knows that the Tour does not have to provide start fees to secure the participation of big-name riders, but Veni is not afraid to make financial deals with teams to convince them to send certain riders. In recent years, he has secured Chris Froome and Tom Dumoulin for the Giro, raising the global profile of the race.

Hungary's Grande Partenza will likely boost Veni's race budget for 2020, but after the route announcement in Milan, he insisted that negotiations with Team Ineos and other major teams had not yet begun.

Vincenzo Nibali, who moved to Trek-Segafredo, is expected to compete in the Giro, as are talented young riders Remco Evenepoel (Deceuninck-Quick Step) and Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates). Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale) could also compete in the Giro.

2019 Giro d'Italia winner Richard Karapas has hinted that he will return in 2020 after moving to Team Ineos, and Vegni expects the strength of the British team's Grand Tour roster to be matched by Thomas, or Bernal, in Budapest on May 9 He is hoping that the strength of the British team's Grand Tour roster will match that of Thomas or Bernal in Budapest on May 9. Team Ineos will determine its 2020 Grand Tour roster in November after analyzing the route.

"We will have to choose our leaders carefully because we have four Grand Tour winners on the 2020 roster," Vegni told Cycling News and other media after the route announcement in Milan on Thursday night.

"Things are still wide open and I don't think a decision has been made yet. I haven't talked to the team, but if Froome is back to his best, I think he deserves to go for a fifth Tour de France win. If he does, I don't know if Bernal is the right rider to help him: ...... There may be other options. I think Ineos' decision will depend on the health and condition of the riders. That will determine who will run the Giro and who will run the Tour. Carapaz, Froome, Bernal, or Thomas would be an important part of the team in the Giro."

Although the Italian riders and teams were not clearly visible at Thursday's Giro presentation, Veni knows that the survival of the Androni Giacattoli, Bardiani CSF, and Neri Sottoli Serre Italia teams depends on their participation in the 2020 race They know that their participation in the 2020 race is essential to the survival of their teams. However, recent UCI reforms will reduce the number of wildcard teams that Veni can invite to the Giro. If, as expected, Cofidis qualifies for the 19-team WorldTour category, Veni will only have two wild-card teams available.

The winner of the Ciclismo Cup, a season-long racing series, would no longer earn an automatic invitation, but one of the wild cards would have to be earned by an Italian team, while Total Direct Energie would be the 2019 Professional automatic invitation as the highest ranked Continental team.

"I don't like it at all," Veni said of the new UCI rules. It doesn't help Italian cycling, which has dedicated so much to the sport."

"They face a tough future and I will do what I can to help them. The French team (Total Direct Energie) will focus on the Tour de France, so I want to invite the three Italian teams to help them survive.