Alberto Contador talked to the media prior to starting the Vuelta a España on Saturday in Pamplona: “My objective is to fight for the victory. I might win or lose but I’ll start the start with the illusion that I’ll win it. I’m not saying that I’m the favourite, that’s an opinion from media and fans. From my side, I know that I’ll have to face very strong rivals. I’m well. I’m motivated. I’m impatient. The opening team time trial offers a very nice course. It’ll deliver a huge emotion. I’m never able to come to Pamplona for the San Fermin because of my cycling, so I’m delighted to be here for the Vuelta.”
About the six-months break in his 2012 season due to a ban, he said: “Not only the past six months but the past two years have impacted me a lot. I can’t forget anything. I’m not angry in any way. I’m mentally very good now and focused on doing a great race. During those past six months, I’ve trained very hard in order to get in the best possible shape. I’m supposedly fresher than my rivals who have done the Giro or the Tour - but that’s debatable."
"Sometimes it’s harder to train than to compete. The main difference between me and the other contenders is that I might be mentally more relaxed than them. They might be physically better than me at the beginning and I’ll possibly be fresher towards the end. The doubts I’ve got about my form are in relation to my schedule of the past two weeks: riding the Eneco Tour, I haven’t done any long climb during that period. I might not be at my best during the first week of the Vuelta, but I expect to be better later on.”
Contador expects the Vuelta to be decided during the stages in the Asturias (14, 15 and 16).
“In theory, the 40-km individual time and the three mountain stages in the Asturias will be decisive but something new could happen at Bola del Mundo on the penultimate day. At the 2011 Giro, I took the lead quite early but all three-week long Tours are different from each other. I’ll take it day by day. It’s difficult to calculate because it’ll be a very spectacular race. The mileage of the stages is short compared to the Giro and the Tour. It favours people to be fresh for the last hill. This Vuelta has a beautiful course. It’s probably better than before.”
On his rivals - such as Chris Froome “I have a lot of rivals for the overall ranking. Three of them Denis Menchov, Alejandro Valverde and Juan José Cobo know how to win the Vuelta because they have already done it in the past.
Looking at the results of last year’s Vuelta and this year’s Tour de France, Froome is my main opponent because he’s a good time triallist and he has a very strong team [Sky]. Last year, he had the opportunity to win the Vuelta if his team chose another tactic, but we’ll never know if he had the possibility to win the Tour as Bradley Wiggins was the best in the time trials."
"I’m happy that Chris is here racing. His presence increases the quality of the Vuelta.”
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