American still dealing with missing Tour selection
Four days into his Tour de France debut and Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale) had won two stages. The explosive 22 year old rider has been dominant all season with fifteen wins thus far. Liquigas-Cannondale teammate Ted King says he remembers when they weren’t on the same team and much prefers now riding alongside the Slovakian.
“I remember racing against him in Paris-Nice in 2010 and he wasn’t much fun to go up against,” King tells VeloNation. “Racing for him, however, is considerably more fun. His ability to deliver is among the absolute best in the business, so it’s fun when it’s time for me to go to work on his behalf, knowing that there’s a very good chance we’ll be celebrating with some Proseco that evening.”
King, who is in his second year on the Italian team, says people should not be surprised that Sagan has continued his season long success in the worlds biggest race.
“Look at the past two years and especially the past three months. He’s proven he can do nearly anything on the bike, including clipping out in the final 200 meters and still win a sprint, so the nature of these finishes suits him perfectly. His Tour of California was a good confidence boost for him and Tour de Suisse was another nice pat on the back. He rested up really briefly after that and now he’s going to work in France. I’m not surprised in the least.”
King, who has been alongside Sagan for a number of his wins this season, unfortunately did not make the final Tour de France roster. He says he was bitterly disappointed as he had targeted the race, which he has previously never ridden before.
“It was tough to hear that it was going to be a no,” the American told VeloNation.
“Look, I knew all along I was right on the borderline. I had been among the guys in the mix since camps last December and it wasn’t until about one week before that I heard I wasn’t going. I’ve been part of some huge wins all season and especially lately.
“I don’t race very often for my own results, rather I’m laying down some watts all day long for the rider most likely to succeed that day in Liquigas-Cannondale kit. My fitness was there, the motivation was there, it just didn’t work out given the roster we were sending.
“Bike racing consists of a lot of highs and lows. I’m rolling with it and will come away just fine.”
The 29 year old has spent the past few days in the Dolomites in Italy and says the training has helped him clear his head and deal with the disappointment of missing Tour. He now changes his focus to the Tour of Poland.
“After that I’ll head back to North America for Tours of Utah and Colorado, err, the USA Pro Cycling Challenge. Then the two Canadian WorldTour races and hopefully back to Europe for the World Championships. September is a long way off, we’ll see how this next month and a half goes.”