Friday 29 May 2015 18:08, UK
I felt before the Giro d’Italia started that Alberto Contador was capable of winning both this race and July’s Tour de France and, having seen his performances in the past week in particular, I’m more confident than ever that he will do the double.
His display on the devilishly difficult Passo del Mortirolo climb on stage 16 on Tuesday was especially impressive and his attack on stage 18 was also a potential race-winner in its own right.
Granted, the likes of Chris Froome and Nairo Quintana aren’t there to challenge him, but he just looks so comfortable and convincing on the bike.
The Mortirolo is one of the toughest climbs in professional cycling and that was evident in the way the likes of Fabio Aru, Yuri Trofimov and Leopold Konig – all strong climbers – were struggling their way up, but Contador made it look gentle. He tamed a beast that day.
The key for him now is to finish the Giro off safely and then rest. As soon as he crosses the finish line in Milan on Sunday, recuperation should be the only thing on his mind.
When I won the Giro-Tour double in 1987, I only had 17 days between the last stage of the Giro and the first stage of the Tour and I barely lifted a finger in that time, other than to keep the legs spinning. I definitely didn’t race.
Contador has it slightly easier, with 33 days separating the Giro and Tour this year, but minimising the strain on his body should still be a priority.
I find it a little strange that he has decided to race at the four-day Route de Sud in the middle of June. I wouldn’t have done that myself.
I can only think he is going to use it as a training ride, but it won’t be easy, because it’s based down in the Pyrenees and there are one or two tough climbs on the route. It will be interesting to see if he goes for the win or just uses it to keep his race sharpness.
As well as Contador’s performances, the main talking point from the final week of the Giro has been the ethics of attacking a general classification rival.
The issue was first raised on stage 16, when Astana pushed on at the front of the peloton despite Contador having punctured behind, and it escalated further on stage 18, when Contador attacked after Mikel Landa, who is second overall, had been caught behind a crash.
I think the two incidents have to be taken separately. In the Astana case, that was wrong. OK, Katusha also played their part in distancing Contador, but Astana will be well aware of the unwritten rule of not attacking the race leader and they should have abided by it.
In Contador’s case, I have seen his attack described as “revenge”, but I’m not sure it was. When he already had a lead of over four minutes, why would he need to get involved in a tit-for-tat war with Astana? He didn't need to.
I personally think that he had always planned to attack at that point, whether Landa was next to him or not. He knows the Monte Ologno climb well and he knew that the steepest ramps are at the bottom, so for me, that move was strategy, not revenge.
Plus, third-placed Aru was still there near the head of the bunch, so if Contador had sat up and waited for Landa, he risked being attacked himself by the Italian.
I’m well aware of Contador’s notorious attack on Andy Schleck at the 2010 Tour after Schleck has shed his chain, but that was different. The race was still hanging in the balance. There was nothing sinister this time. It was just racing.
