British sprinter Mark Cavendish outlined his season plans yesterday in California. His goals are concrete – including the Tour de France's green jersey – but the overall theme is to win.
"I don't race bicycles to make the cover of a magazine, and not even for the money. Quite simply, I want to leave a mark in my sport and the only way to do it is to win, win, win," Cavendish told La Gazzetta dello Sport. "I train because I love riding and love competing. I don't want only to give the best of myself. I want to be better than everybody else."
Cavendish is with his HTC team in Morgan Hill, California, home of the team's new bike sponsor, Specialized. At the team presentation yesterday, he discussed racing, from the Tour Down Under to the Tour de France.
This year at the Tour de France, he won another five stages. He added to his six stage wins from last year and four from 2008. With 15 stages, does Cavendish hope to beat Eddy Merckx's record of 34 stage wins?
"They asked me if I'd like and I said 'yes.' Who would give a different answer to a question like that? I am still a long way off, though."
Cavendish will build to the Tour de France starting at the Tour Down Under in Australia, January 16 to 23. There he will face his former team-mate André Greipel for the first time.
"It will be a great challenge and I can't wait for it. He was very strong with us, but he has to prove that he can fit into another team."
They butted heads over team leadership in the past four years. Germany's Greipel had enough and next year, he will lead Belgium's OmegaPharma-Lotto team.
After Australia, Cavendish will race the Tour of Qatar, Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico, Milano-Sanremo...
"To win a second Sanremo," continued Cavendish, "that's what I would like."
Then, He will race the Northern Classics in April: Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.
"I would like to race Flanders and Roubaix, of course. They are part of cycling's story and I am ready to be a helper at those races. Maybe it's the only races where I can do it. Doing it that way, I can understand if I have the ability to one day win them."
This May, team owner Bob Stapleton sent Greipel to the Giro d'Italia and Cavendish to the Tour of California. Cavendish lives in Tuscany and would love to return to race the Giro d'Italia, where he has already won five stages.
"I have yet to decide between the Giro d'Italia and California."
The Tour de Suisse in June will be his last race before the Tour de France, July 2 to 24. At the Tour, he will bump into rivals Alessandro Petacchi and, now with the same Garmin team, Tyler Farrar and Thor Hushovd.
Petacchi is also in California and met with Cavendish one day to train.
"Alessandro is a champion," said Cavendish. "He is the smartest of my rivals. It's like this: if I am one hundred per cent and the team does everything well, no one can beat me. But Petacchi has the head to win.
"Farrar and Hushovd? I'm glad they are together, so now their team will start working seriously..."
Cavendish will also race against Farrar at the Tour Down Under. For now, he is training in California before returning to Tuscany for his first Italian Christmas.