Chris Froome will be biggest threat at 2015 Tour de France, says Alberto Contador

Alberto Contador says Sky’s Chris Froome will be his biggest rival at next year’s Tour de France, which begins in Utrecht on 4 July. By then, the Spaniard hopes to have achieved the first half of the Giro-Tour double – something no rider has completed since the late Marco Pantani in 1998.

Speaking to The Independent’s Alasdair Fotheringham from Tinkoff-Saxo’s team camp in Gran Canaria, where the Danish outfit this week debuted its camouflage training kit, Contador said he was pleased at Froome revealing confirmation by Froome that he would ride the 2015 Tour.

In October, the Team Sky rider who won the race in 2013 suggested he might skip it next year because of there being just one, short individual time trial during the three weeks, falling on the opening day – something that led 1988 Tour winner Pedro Delgado to describe it as “an anti-Froome race.”

Contador, who celebrates his 3nd birthday tomorrow, said:  “I wanted him to decide to do the Tour. We all know what it’s like, when the participation isn’t as high-level as it might be in a race, a lot of the time people start to question the result.”

Both Contador and Froome crashed out of this summer’s Tour during the first half of the race, leaving Astana’s Vincenzo Nibali free to dominate the General Classification.

The Sicilian’s haul of four road stages on his way to winning the yellow jersey was the most by an overall champion since Eddy Merckx in 1974.

Reflecting on that race, where he broke his tibia after coming off on a descent, Contador said: “[They say] ‘and if so-and-so had been there, or if this and this had happened…’ I’m sure that if me and Chris had been on this year’s race, Nibali’s status would be even higher than it now is following his Tour win.”

Even before Froome’s 2013 Tour win, Contador had identified him as the one rider he most feared and nothing has changed since then.

“There will be other rivals, but the rider who will be the most difficult to beat in the Tour will be Froome. And it doesn’t matter whether there’s a long time trial or not.”

“So what does it matter if it’s a really mountainous Tour? It makes me smile when people say, ‘Ah, it’s not good for Froome’. He’s a superb climber who’s also an amazing time trialist.”

But Contador doesn’t believe his Vuelta triumph in September, when he won the overall by 1 minute 10 seconds from Froome, will give him a significant psychological advantage over the British rider, which will see the pair go head to head in February in the Vuelta a Andalucia.

“Undoubtedly, he is one of the big reference points in the Tour, and with a better level of participation, the more motivation you have. But you have to remember that every race is different, every season we all start from zero, even if for your head it’s better to finish first than second.”

Turning to the subject of that potential Giro-Tour double – something only achieved by seven men – Contador said: “When it comes to the Giro and Tour, for me neither has priority over the other.

“It’s going to be all out for the Giro and then I’ll have to recover as best I can. I know it’s risky, with such a short period of time between the two, but it’s a challenge, it’s something that I’ve never done before as a deliberate choice.”

Contador rode both races in 2011. He won the Giro, but initially did not plan to ride the Tour, with the Court of Arbitration for Sport hearing related to his positive test for clenbuterol at the previous year’s Tour looming, although it was postponed several times and eventually took place towards the end of the year.

The Spaniard belatedly decided to ride the 2011 Tour, but lost time due to a series of crashes in the first week and eventually finished fifth behind Cadel Evans. He had won the previous six Grand Tours he took part in – although he would later be stripped of the 2010 Tour and 2011 Giro titles.

“In 2011 I only did the Tour after the Giro because I was told I had to go there at the last moment,” Contador said. “But I didn’t plan it. Let’s see if it’s possible to win one, both... or maybe neither.”

“Everybody thinks I will win it, and if I don’t it’s a disaster. So it’s extra pressure. But you want to do something different and the last time was in 1998. So whether it’s good or bad, that’s my choice,” he added.