Although he won a stage in last year’s Tour, Joaquim Rodriguez has decided to echo his 2011 racing programme and miss cycling’s biggest event once again.
The Team Katusha leader will focus instead on the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España, feeling that the courses are likely to suit his characteristics better than the big July event.
“Not only are there 100 kilometres of time trials, but I also get the impression that there are less mountains than in 2011 and 2010,” he told Biciciclismo in relation to the Tour de France.
“Surely I could do something good, if I'm was in great shape and I had luck. But the Giro, with a tough course, and the Vuelta, certainly present a profile that is mountainous and nervous. I can aim more for stage wins and the podium [there].”
The Spaniard year old has outlined the initial months of his racing programme. He is likely to begin with the Challenge Majorca races, then will dispute either the Volta ao Algarve or the Vuelta a Andalucia, then Tirreno-Adriatico.
After that, he will either compete in the Volta a Catalunya or else do a training camp before hitting the GP Miguel Indurain, the Vuelta al Pais Vasco and the Ardennes Classics.
The 32 year old had a strong season this year, finishing fifth in both the Giro and the Critérium du Dauphiné, winning two stages, the points classification and the King of the Mountains in the latter, and took a stage plus the overall in the Vuelta a Burgos. His other results included two stages in the Vuelta, a stage in the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, second in both the Amstel Gold Race and Flèche Wallonne, plus third in the Giro di Lombardia.
Russian rider Denis Menchov is thought to be in negotiations with the team and if he comes on board, he would likely be the team leader for the Tour de France. He has finished third, fourth and fifth in the race in the past, as well as winning two Vueltas and one Giro.