The three capos: Movistar's 2018 launch

Valverde, Quintana and Landa were front and centre at the Movistar launch yesterday where the team unveiled its kit, bikes and men's and women's rosters for 2018.

Valverde, Quintana, Landa at the 2018 Movistar team launch (Movistar) Source: Movistar

How do you solve a problem like three capos? At Movistar's 2018 launch where it unveiled its 25-man and 10-woman team rosters, Movistar quite rightly put cycling's biggest stars front and centre. 

With the firepower Alejandro Valverde, Nairo Quintana and new signing Mikel Landa bring to the table, it's a nice problem to have.

But what about the likelihood of ensuing tension? The more seasoned of the three, 37-year-old Valverde may yet ride the 2018 Tour, but in October told El Pais newspaper, he'd rather not.

The evergreen veteran is keen to focus his season around a Valverde-perfect parcours of the road world championships in Innsbruck, Austria.

Any co-leader tension will likely come from Quintana and Landa if both are confirmed for the Tour de France. 

Just before the launch yesterday, Froome's bridesmaid for the last two years, Landa told Basque news outlet, Deia, he would happily ride in a co-leader position as "allies" at the Tour with the Colombian but would not stop if asked.

"If I lost time, I will stop. But if I have not lost any time, I will not stop," Landa said.

Movistar made the rare but not unprecedented move to launch the women's team right there alongside the men's, the company's investment further proof more and more businesses are looking to invest in the elite women's level of the sport.

Launch of the 2018 Movistar men's and women's teams (Movistar) Source: Movistar

Australia's Rachel Neylan, a new signing for the team from Orica-Scott, was sad to have missed the launch but keen to get 2018 started.

The team's title sponsor hopes to soon bring new tech to the team including real-time and tracking of every rider during training. 

The men's team starts 2018 in Australia at the Tour Down Under (minus Quintana, Landa and Valverde) while the women's team kicks off the season at Setmana Valenciana in Feburary. 

Men's Team: Andrey Amador, Winner Anacona, Jorge Arcas, Carlos Barbero, Daniele Bennati, Carlos Betancur, Nuno Bico, Richard Carapaz, Héctor Carretero, Jaime Castrillo, Víctor de la Parte, Imanol Erviti, Rubén Fernández, Mikel Landa, Nelson Oliveira, Antonio Pedrero, Dayer Quintana, Nairo Quintana, José Joaquín Rojas, Jaime Rosón, Eduardo Sepúlveda, Marc Soler, Jasha Süttlerlin, Rafa Valls, Alejandro Valverde. 

Women's Team: Aude Biannic, Mavi García, Alicia González, Malgorzata Jasinska, Lorena Llamas, Eider Merino, Rachel Neylan, Lourdes Oyarbide, Gloria Rodríguez, Alba Teruel.