Chris Froome has been warned by Tour de France rival Alberto Contador: I want my title back
CHRIS FROOME has been warned by Tour de France rival Alberto Contador: I want my title back.
The two-time champ finished fifth last year almost 10 minutes down on the British ace who bagged his second Yellow Jersey.
But Contador believes he is in far better shape this year and is ready to win for the first time since 2009 having been stripped of his 2010 victory for a doping bust.
The Spaniard, 33, said: “My goal is to win, that’s for sure.
“Last year I was right on the limit with my body. This year I feel fresher after my build-up and the only thing I have on my mind is to fight for the win.
“I think it’s going to be a very unpredictable Tour because the route is so hard.
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“Froome may well be able to open a gap in the first few mountain stages.
“But then the last five stages are really hard and everything can change. It’s going to be wide-open until the very last day.”
But Contador admits Froome will have a big advantage as he can count on his powerhouse Team Sky outfit in the three-week tour which starts in Normandy on Saturday.
The Tinkoff-Saxo rider added: “I think you can only have one opinion of Sky and anybody who’s seen the names that they have in their Tour line-up would be impressed.
“Any one of them could be a leader in another team. And some riders they’ve left at home would all be definite fixtures in any other Tour de France team line-up.
“Sky’s team, specially for the mountains, are on a level above the rest, and that’s maybe what the main difficulty is for Froome’s rivals.
“That is not the best scenario for me, obviously.
“But the Tour is going to be very eventful, and I’m not going there thinking that I’ve got no chance at all of winning. Not in the slightest.”
