Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) has revealed he will miss the Vuelta a Espana as a result of the crashed which saw the five-time Grand Tour winner abandon the Tour de France.
Contador quit the Tour de France on stage ten after crashing on a descent and fracturing his right tibia, ending the Spaniard’s challenge for a third Tour title.
The 31-year-old refused to rule out riding his home Grand Tour, the Vuelta a Espana, which starts on August 23, but took to Twitter on Wednesday morning to reveal his recovery was “complicated”.
“Bad day, the wound healing gets complicated. I’ve no date to take the bike. Goodbye to the Vuelta,” said Contador.
Bad day,the wound healing gets complicated,I’ve no date to take the bike.Goodbye to the Vuelta.
— Alberto Contador (@albertocontador) July 23, 2014
Contador’s crash left Tinkoff-Saxo with their leader but the team has recovered to win two stages since El Pistolero’s departure.
First Rafal Majka, who was a late call-up to the team after the team refused to pick Roman Kreuziger until an investigation into alleged biological passport abnormalities in 2011 and 2012 is concluded, won stage 14 in the Alps from Grenoble to Risoul.
And Michael Rogers followed the Polish rider’s lead by triumphing on stage 16 in the Pyrenees, attacking late from the remains of a breakaway to win in Bagnères-de-Luchon.
