Wiggins’ Classics odds reflect his form, rather than his confidence
Published:
A major goal for Sir Bradley Wiggins in 2015, as his time with Team Sky winds down, is to win the Paris-Roubaix, the biggest race in the sports “Spring Classics” quadrant.
In warming up for the event, the track and road icon turned in a somewhat disappointing performance at the Tour of Qatar, finishing in 78th place and losing ground on eventual winner Niki Terpstra in all six stages of the race.
Despite such an average return Team Sky sports director, Servais Knaven, claimed Wiggins was still in a strong position to become the first Brit to win the one-day race held in northern France on April 12.
“Brad is where he needs to be right now. He is looking strong and has been doing a lot of extra work before and after the racing,” he said.
“It has been a good training block for him and he has grown in stature as the race has gone on. This was a big step in terms of his preparations for the classics, and we’re only two weeks away from when they start now.”
Such confidence is perhaps expected ahead of such an important part of the season – you wouldn’t hear the Champions League underdog predicting a defeat before the final – but one look at the 34-year-old’s odds should give a clearer indication of his chances.
The 2012 Tour de France winner is 12/1 to claim the Paris-Roubaix spoils, which is oddly a shorter mark than his recent Qatar conqueror. That price puts Wiggins among the outsiders for the title, with five men all rated as better bets by Ladbrokes.
Swiss rider Fabian Cancellara, who has won the event three times, is the understandable 7/2 favourite, with Sep Vanmarcke and Tom Boonen keeping the closest eye on him at 6/1 and 13/2 respectively.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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