Top-dog tag doesn’t worry Giro winner Nibali in the Vuelta

VINCENZO Nibali remains confident he can cope with the added pressure of being regarded pre-race favourite for the Vuelta a Espana, which starts in the remote northwestern town of Vilanova de Arousa today.

“Being favourite does make me feel tense, as always, but nobody can criticise what I’ve done this year,” said the Italian Team Astana rider, who won the Giro d’Italia in May.

“I think it’s pretty much normal. I know I’ve got nothing to prove after winning the Giro, but I still want to do as well here as I possibly can,” added the 28-year-old, whose Grand Tour breakthrough came in 2010 when he won the Vuelta.

“It’s important to do well here because the World Cham- pionships follow the Vuelta (on home soil at the end of September) and a lot of people will be watching my performance here as a guide to how well I can ride there.”

Race organisers have included a brutal 11 summit finishes in this year’s edition with the penultimate 20th stage taking in the gruelling climb of the Angliru, forcing Nibali to focus on reaching peak fitness in the third week of the tour.

However, the Italian was quick to point out that he would not be resting on his laurels in the early exchanges of the 21-stage race.

“The Vuelta has a tough start with a team time trial (today), which should benefit Astana as we have some strong specialists like Jakob Fuglsang and Jani Brajkovic, and we’ll be aiming to gain a few seconds advantage,” he said.

“But in a race with so many difficult moments, almost anything can happen. I won’t say I’m here to win, I never say that in a race, but I’m certainly here to achieve a good overall classification. “If I feel in good enough shape to win and have an advantage of just a minute or two, then I will go for broke in a single stage somewhere,” the Italian added. – Reuters

IN THE PINK: Italy’s Vincenzo Nibali, wearing the pink jersey, sprays sparkling wine at the end of the 15th stage of the Giro d’Italia in May.