Tour de France: Wiggins targets Team Sky spot in Le Tour
Published:Sir Bradley Wiggins became the first British winner of the Tour of California and immediately targeted a place in Team Sky’s nine-man set-up for this year’s Tour de France.
Doubts had surfaced about the 2012 champion’s participation in La Grande Boucle with last year’s winner Chris Froome set to lead the British team’s challenge.
The 34-year-old proved plenty of his critics wrong in beating Garmin star Rohan Dennis by 30 seconds to claim the Tour of California title.
From the moment Wiggo won the Stage 2 time-trial by 44 seconds all the way through to the final stage he showed everybody he was in excellent form and would be an asset to any Tour de France team.
And now the Olympic Gold medallist is targeting a spot in cycling’s biggest race of the year, which starts in Yorkshire on July 5th.
Wiggins, who Ladbrokes price at 28/1 for Tour de France glory, will have to ride in support of Froome’s bid to win back-to-back titles if he wants to ride Le Tour but if the two Brits can co-exist Team Sky will have an excellent chance of having the winning rider for the third straight year.
Froome is the 10/11 favourite with Ladbrokes betting to defend his title and his chances will only be improved with an in-form Wiggins by his side on the roads of France.
Froome and Wiggins are not the only Brits targeting Tour de France success with the fastest man on two wheels, Mark Cavendish, aiming to be the first man past the finishing line when Stage 1 comes to an end in Harrogate.
The 29-year-old has never worn the famous yellow jersey and with this year’s first stage finishing just around the corner from where his mother used to live, the Manxman will be desperate for victory.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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