Endura clad Movistar rider Alejandro Valverde ready to challenge Vincenzo Nibali for the Tour de France win if the opportunity arises
![]() |
News – Valverde Ready to Challenge
(from Movistar team website)
NOTE: Send your results as well as club, team & event news here
“I’m in the place I more or less expected to be at this point of the race” says Valverde who sits in second place, 4.37 down on the leader Vincenzo Nibali. His lead over the 3rd place rider Bardet through is seconds (13) and there is a queue of four riders all ready to jump into a podium spot should Valverde lose more time like he did on stage 14.
“It’s been quite a peculiar Tour, with the abandons of Froome and Alberto” Valverde explains. “Still, Nibali has shown to be super strong. I’m in second position and I’m happy to be in that place. There’s still a long way to go, with three demanding stages in the Pyrenees. They begin on Tuesday with a HC mountain to climb just before the finish at the bottom of said climb and then two summit finishes before a flat stage, time trial and then Paris.
“After such a Tour, so demanding, anything could happen: we could gain time, lose more… who knows” says Valverde. “It’s obvious that the more we get from these stages, the better, so we can tackle the time trial with a good chance. We must keep looking forward, never surrender and never say ‘it’s enough with just second place’. You have to aspire to something else – but for the time being, we’re happy with it.”
Will he take advantage if Nibali has a bad day? “Up to date, he’s proven to be the strongest rider in this Tour. We have done two weeks of racing, the Pyrenees are coming in the last week and we’re humans – everyone can have a bad day. Should he suffer and we find good legs, we’ll try to profit from it, but looking at how things have stood, he’s looking really strong, superior to us”.
“Still, we will never give up. Over these three days, we’ll try to fight and take as much time as possible wherever we can, but we don’t know where we will attempt to do it. Any strategy, we keep it to ourselves. Any of the three stages can be dangerous: tomorrow’s is the one after the rest day and is rather long; the one on Wednesday, finishing atop Saint-Lary, is really stressful, short, just 125km, with four tough climbs and it’s going to be a hard one; and the third, with Tourmalet and Hautacam, is also demanding”.
“Even more after the two previous stages and everything we’ve gone through in this Tour. It will be as difficult as the other ones. I don’t know which one will be more crucial”.
On who his biggest rival for the podium is, Valverde says “It if comes down only to the final time trial, I’d say Van Garderen is the most threatening. Péraud is also a good time triallist. Pinot and Bardet? They’re good, but I don’t think they’re superior to me in a TT considering previous results”.
“Besides, it’s a special time trial; we will see how the form of everyone unfolds after these four days, because it’s not flat at all, but long and demanding. For me, all four are dangerous, because they’re close enough to get onto the podium with a great TT. At the moment, we just think about the Pyrenees.â€
Send your results as well as club, team & event news here
Other Results on VeloUK (including reports containing results)
- Features, Reports, Results
- Crit Result: Otley Support Races
- Crit Result: Dick Evans Memorial Summer Series 5
- RR Result: Midmar Road Race
- Crit Result: RCR FatCreations Goodwood Series 1
- Crit Result: King & Queen of the Bowl Series 5
- Crit Result: LDN/Brother UK Summer Crit Series 4
- Crit Results: CCA Twilight Zone Crits 10
- TT Result: Shropshire CCA 25m TT
- HC Result: 7 Hills CC Hill Climb
- TT Result: Crawley Wheelers 10m TT
- TT Result: Yorkshire Cycling Federation 50m TT
- TT Result: Witham Wheelers 25m TT
- TT Result: Cleveland Police 10m TT
- TT Result: Norwich ABC 10m TT
- TT Result: Port Sunlight Wheelers 10m TT
- TT Result: Rotherham Wheelers 10m TT
- TT Result: Northampton & District CA 10m TT
- Crit Result: Lichfield CCC Youth Races 5
- Crit Result: Miltonduff Ladies Day of racing
- TT Result: Kent CA 10m TT
- Result: SCCA & WCTTCA 100m TT
- Result: VTTA North Lancs & Lakes 50m TT
- Result: Salty Summer crit series 3
- Result: Cleveland Police 25m TT
- Result: British Schools Championships
- Result: Reading CC 25m TT
- Result: Chippenham & District Wheelers 25m TT
- Result: Portsmouth Evening Circuits (July 1)
- Result: Paramount CRT Summer Road Race
- Result: Stockton Grand Prix (Mens)
- Result: Stockton Grand Prix (Women)
- TDF: Stage 1 – win for Yves Lampaert
- Result: Ilkley Town Centre Races
- Result: Royal Navy & Marines CA 10m TT
- Result: City Road Club Hull 10m TT
- Result: Essex Roads 11.5m TT
- Result: Lichfield No Frills 2
- Result: Team LDN – Brother UK Summer Crit Series 3
- Result: Henstridge Circuit Races 4
- Result: Harvey Hadden Crit Series 5
Other News on VeloUK
- News: Shimano 105 Di2 Ribble Range
- News: Ben Healy wins Irish national time trial
- Events: Fort Vale Colne Grand Prix is back!
- News: Pedal Club Lunch, June ‘22
- Latest Podcast: Brother Cycling UK
- Commonwealth Games: UK Islands
- Commonwealth Games: Wales
- News: British Championships on TV
- Commonwealth Games: Team England
- Startlist: Stockton Grand Prix Women
- Preview: 2022 Cicle Classic Day 2
- News: Mildenhall Cycling Mini-Fest
- News: Scottish CX Champs for Dundee
- Events: Bath CC Women’s Road Race
- Startlist: 2022 CiCLE Classic (Women)
- Startlist Stockton Grand Prix Men
- Startlist: Junior Men’s CiCLE Classic
- Riders: British Road Championships
- 2022 Women’s Tour
- Next Week: Women’s Tour
- New Shoes Anyone?
- News: Sammie Stuart goes UCI!
- News: Brother UK Sponsors Biggest UK Races
- Scottish Team for Commonwealth Games
- Events: BikeStow Three-Day
- Startlists: Junior Road Championships 2022
- Feature: The Pedal Club Lunch May
- Barnsley Road Club Races This Sunday
- Sunday: Proper Northern Road Race Series 2
- This weekend: 48th Totnes Vire Two Day
- 2022 British Road Championships Venues
- TOUR SERIES: Round 3 (Sunderland) (Men)
- Startlist: Tour Series Round 1 Guisborough
- 2022 Tour Series Rider Squads Revealed
- News: Simon Yates to Vuelta a Asturias
- Events: Shrewsbury Sports Village
- News: 2022 Women’s CiCLE Classic Saved!
- Startlists: 2022 Rapha Lincoln GP
- Startlist: Oakenclough RR
- News: ŠKODA DSI Cycling Academy