Contador vs. Nibali – the latest instalment
The 101st Tour de France had bee billed as a contest between Chris Froome and Alberto Contador, but it became a contest between Giro d’Italia winner Vincenzo Nibali and any other rider with ambitions for overall victory as early as stage two. Froome’s departure, far from clearing the way for Contador has merely presented the Spaniard with another significant challenge. We caught the first glimpse of his plans to overcome it on stage eight.
Contador’s seemingly limitless capacity for aggressive riding in the mountains was revealed again on stage eight, but allied, perhaps for the first time, to a Sky-like display of strength from Tinkoff-Saxo. The British team’s matchbook philosophy – burn ‘em off, one-by-one, until they’re all spent – was ably adopted by Bjarne Riis’ men, with Rafal Majka setting the early pace, before Mick Rogers and then Nico Roche led Contador to the denouement and a showdown with Nibali.
The Italian showed admirable resistance, but cracked in the final 50m, and this involuntary capitulation will give Contador hope. He gained just three seconds on the maillot jaune in Gérardmer, but can expect more significant rewards if he continues to pursue the strategy. Equally heartening for the Spaniard will be the rapid disintegration of Nibali’s Astana team as Tinkoff-Saxo turned the screw. Jakob Fuglsang had provided exemplary service to his leader for almost a week, but as the flamme rouge appeared in Nibali’s vision, he was alone.
While for the spectator, the second and third weeks of the Tour now represent a mouth watering prospect, for Nibali, things may look a little less inviting. He should not be underestimated, however. A Grand Tour champion in his own right, and clearly a superior all-round rider to Contador, he will not fear the Spaniard, nor the mountains. And Contador will see little but opportunity in the parcours of stages to come, starting with Monday’s climb-laden journey from Mulhouse to La Planche des Belles Filles. A Tour that has already delivered more drama in its first week than the 2012 edition managed its entirety looks ready to give again.
