Bradly Wiggins is “arrogant”, conceals himself in a “gruff geezer cloak”, and so dominated the atmosphere around the 2012 Team Sky Tour de France squad that the others on the team had to “ride around his moods like he was a traffic island”.
These are the words of Christopher Froome, written in his new autobiography The Climb, currently being serialised in the British newspaper The Times.
Froome goes on to say he was not invited to the ‘Yellow Ball’ Wiggins threw later in the year to celebrate his victory, nor given his share of the bonus that is traditionally dished out to the riders on the winner’s team.
Wiggins gives the impression he hasn’t got much time for what other people think, but in this case he’d best be bothered, as Froome is Sky’s main man for the 2014 Tour de France and will start as race favourite.
Froome has a great chance to defend his 2013 title and it would come as a great surprise if he is not pivotal in choosing the rest of the team.
There was a sense in 2013 that Dave Brailsford, Sky’s man behind the controls, owed Froome for the way he rode for Wiggins in 2012. Froome entered that race, which saw Wiggins emerge as Britain’s first ever winner, fully expecting to go for the yellow jersey himself if the opportunity arose.
In 2011 it was touch-and-go whether Froome would stay with Sky, but contractual talks with Brailsford left Froome certain that he would be Wiggins’ equal. However, Froome came to realise he was always set to be Wiggins’ super-domestique in 2012, and felt that Brailsford had not been fully forthcoming.
“Dave’s approach was rather like a character in Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass,” Froome writes. “When I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean – ‘neither more nor less’. My understanding was that I would go to the Tour as a protected rider but the details were never teased out. Dave’s words would mean just what he chose them to mean.
“I realised, at last, that everything had been geared towards this. It was never going to be any different. The story was completed long before we got to France. Bradley wins. The book is written. The documentary is made. The promise is fulfilled. We had just been acting it out.”
Cue 2013 and Wiggins is having a stinker but Froome is replicating his teammate’s previous season, winning a series of important stage races through the year and stamping his credentials as Sky’s leader long before the Tour. The potential fireworks from a Wiggo/Froome battle royale at the Tour never come close to being realised. Froome dominates the Tour, winning at a canter.
Fast forward to 2014 and Wiggins seems somewhere near his best after a win at the Tour of California. Realising a desire still existed to partake in another Tour de France, Wiggins started to make conciliatory noises, saying he was ready to doff his chapeau and toe the party line.
“I’d love to be back at the Tour de France. That’s the long-term goal – to be part of that successful team,” he said back in April.
“I missed it last year and had to watch it on the TV. When you see it from the outside then you see just how great the Tour de France is. Obviously there’s a huge opportunity with it starting in the UK this year. Coming back as a former winner and it being there is fantastic.”
In March, Wiggo gave an interview to The Independent in which he stated his intention, if included in the Tour team, to support Froome.
“There were a couple of times last year when Chris was really isolated and I want to be in a position that I can be there when that happens,” he said.
Taking these words at face value, one could argue that Wiggins has had a change in attitude and is now willing to defer to Froome, who has proven to be superior in consistency and longevity. However, Wiggins’ appeals to Brailsford and Froome appear hollow and desperate.
Froome’s comments in his autobiography are his own personal opinion, but they echo what many cycling fans have been saying on club runs and on cycling forums for some time.
The timing of the release of Froome’s book couldn’t come at a worse nor more embarrassing time for Wiggins, sitting as he is on the bench, hoping to be picked for the Tour.
Brailsford may have felt like he owed Froome the team leadership in 2013 but he is a man with little time for sentiment, and this time around he knows he has a rider capable of bringing Sky their third Tour win in three years, a remarkable achievement by any standard.
He also knows that Froome needs to be protected from friction, and that he has men like Richie Porte to support him. Also, if and when the big men step up and Froome does become isolated, the Kenyan-born Briton has shown he can handle himself perfectly well alone.
The truth is that Wiggins has an ego the size of a jumbo jet, but one made out of egg shells. He is a winner, yes, and a fine bike rider, but he is also tetchy, rude, petulant and divisive when he wants to be.
Of the day in the Alps in 2012 when he rode away from Wiggins, Froome writes that he could not understand the furore his actions created. As far as he was concerned, he was defending the yellow for Sky, meaning that whether it was to ultimately rest on his or Wiggins’ shoulders, the important thing was just to win it.
“Brad was folding physically and mentally, and quicker than I had thought possible,” he writes. “I got the feeling that he would literally just get off his bike were I to carry on pushing. What was a simple and perfect plan to me seemed to translate for Brad into a public humiliation.”
There you have it. Wiggins is just not a team player. He was not in the Sky team that went to ride the Yorkshire stages recently, nor the one that went to scout out the cobbles.
If Wiggins is not invited to ride on the Sky team for 2014, he only has himself to blame.
george
Guest
For all those suggesting that Brad is not a team player, could you please tell me who led out Cav for the sprint victory on stage 20 in 2012 and I'd also like an example of a yellow Jersey doing the same job in Paris. In my eyes any Yellow Jersey that did either of these things, risking his GC chances, would indeed be considered a team player in my humble opinion.
glynjamin
Guest
Well, indeed. I couldn't have been more wrong with many of my criticisms: topical and prescient. Being one step ahead of the game must be particularly satisfying for a journalist, I imagine. There has subsequently been an explosion of interest and opinion on the cycling websites and in British newspapers. As a Wiggins admirer (and it's hard not to be for a Brit living in Australia given everything he has done on the track and road) I naturally incline to the Robert Millar viewpoint. While there are similarities to the Pieterson-Cook situation, I do think they are superficial. If Wiggins has an ego, Pieterson has a vastly greater one, as his recent column in the English Daily Telegraph embarrassingly reveals. It's true Wiggins did leave Garmin in less than ideal circumstances, but one must remember that Wiggins is British cycling to the core and SKY were effectlvely the GB road team project. I agree, he surely has to leave. As I see it the only problem with OGE is the Rio olympics. Wiggins is only good for another year or so, as Evans and Basso have shown, and that period would be ruined by Olympic preparation. I would suggest part of the attraction of Wiggins would be mentorship of the Yates brothers.
dave B
Guest
Froome has shown recently to be pretty lame with both his comments, and worst of all his biography. Brad, whatever your thoughts, has this season shown his super strength, and said all the right things as per team priorities.To not even consider him for the most important cycling race is an amazing combination of ignorance and dispespect. Dave Brailsford is a lame snake. cheers dave..
damo
Guest
LOL ! will reply to myself to apologise for posting the same thing as everyone else ! Note to self, refresh page before posting ! cheers
damo
Guest
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-06-06/bradley-wiggins-expects-to-miss-tour-de-france/5506776 Just read this on the ABC news site, I know it hasn't been made official yet but if Wiggins himself is being quoted then he must have been given a clear indication that his cookie has crumbled.
Lee Rodgers
Expert
So... you were saying? ;-) Sorry, couldn't resist! Madness though, really, to be leaving him at home when on paper who wouldn't want 2 TdF winners on the same team? Absolutely has to leave the team now, this is actually quite embarassing, but he has previous, he left Garmin under a cloud, annoying the heck out of Vaughters when he jumped ship for Sky. The ma n's getting a reputation - though Froome did play his part too...
Lee Rodgers
Expert
Yeah just read this too, I can imagine how gutted he must be. What a daft situation though! \http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/jun/06/bradley-wiggins-not-ride-tour-de-france-chris-froome-sky
BendySheep
Guest
Update: Wiggo just interviewed on BBC radio discussing why he's not picked for the Tour and openly discussing that trust might be an issue and why Froome might not want him. Pat on the back Lee!
glynjamin
Guest
thanks for taking the time to respond and defend your position. There are not so many authors throughout the media who make the effort to reply to comments. It makes for a healthy discussion. Differences of opinion noted. I am convinced Wiggo would make the team stronger, but only, as you and others say, if his head is right could that occur. He sounded genuine after California and one thing about the man is that he's not afraid to speak it how he sees it. It makes sense for the management to disavow the possibililty of a plan "B" as that is merely destabilising, but I can't believe that Brailsford wouldn't consider the matter deeply. All the recent signs (Yorkshire, cobbles) suggest Wiggins is to be left out. It will be very interesting to observe what happens if he excels in the Tour de Suisse
BendySheep
Guest
And that, I suspect, is what the big fear is. Wiggo could go in and be a stalking horse rather than support.
Lee Rodgers
Expert
Agreed! ;-)
damo
Guest
+1 mate, thought it made great sense of the potential dilemma Sky face & the intricacies of the 'team' dynamic, where everyone is part of a team but only one guy actually really wins.
Justin Curran
Roar Rookie
Why Matt White thinks Wiggo would be a good fit for OGE baffles me.
Sam Brown
Roar Guru
Have to agree with what has been said regarding the tough decision facing Sky. However I imagine Brailsford kind of just wishes he could tell them to both act like professionals and do the job they are paid very well to do. However I would like to say that it is kind of sad Wiggins will either be forced to waste himself as a domestique or sit on the sidelines for this Tour. They haven't gone quite as hard with the mountains as last year and have put a big final Time Trial which would suit him down to the bone. With two different teams Wiggins v Froome could have headlined this year's outing. Even if he does end up racing for Sky if he manages to stick with the leaders for most of the mountains and is only trailing by a minute or two at the end it could make for a very exciting TT. Froome is good but he doesn't have the time trialling ability of a supremely motivated Wiggins.
BendySheep
Guest
Personally I think the article is spot on in all aspects Lee. I think the dilemma Sky have is one of trust - ie can Wiggo be trusted to fully support Froome in his bid? I'm a massive Wiggo fan, and although I don't know the guy, everything points to the answer being No.
Steven McBain
Roar Guru
Well said re 2012 FW.
Steven McBain
Roar Guru
I think that any individual sport - and let's be honest, cycling ain't a team support other than providing a support cast - generally throws up ruthless (but talented) egomaniacs with scant regard for anyone else, that's why they win. It's exactly the same in F1. What I'd love to know is Sky's thinking when they put this team together. I guess from their point of view they've got 2 Tours in the bag and so what is there to discuss? But at the same time if you throw enough money at most things you'll get some modicum of success. Cavendish was another prime example where you've created a team to win Le Tour but yet recruit a guy who craves a team around him to work on the sprints. Again they'd argue look at the stage wins I suppose before he moved on. I guess they've been successful and they've done it with a 'Best of British' to boot but I'd love to know whether there was much strategising or just lob cash at it. Sounds like a bit like the football to me and Real Madrid's 'Galacticos'. On a side note, I'd love to see Wiggins and Froome both fit and at the head of different teams. I'd tune in for that.
Lee Rodgers
Expert
Well, thanks for laying out your opinion, that is appreciated! Froome and Brailsford have gone on record these past few days to say that Wiggins is NOT a Plan B and that they do not envisage him being that. And yes, Wiggo is strong (now) but he wouldn;t make Sky stronger as a team - which is the main point here. There's no point having a team full of Maradonas, any manager worth even a pinch of salt knows that. Also, lazy, I disagree on that also, there was only one other report in the media I could find on this, in The Guardian (as of yesterday morning), and I'd say I covered all the main points. Porte is the guy Froome needs, one who can help to a certain point, not one who turns up with an olive branch in one back pocket and a stick of dynamite in another.
FW
Guest
The pair of them are as bad as each other with Froome possibly a tyre width ahead at the moment. One thing I cannot understand is this sympathy for Froome's 2012 TdF. He is an employee of Sky, same way most of us are employed. Why is being a cyclist so different to the real world? I think I could do my boss' job better, I have to work with people I don't like, so, who cares, that's life. Forget the talk of plan B, that's Porte, Wiggins should go on current form (unless he has a bad showing in Switzerland) and all of them leave the polemics at the door...it's only riding a bike after all ;o)
Tim Renowden
Expert
It's a tough task weighing up the following: - Wiggins is undeniably a strong enough rider that he could make a significant difference on the road, or provide a credible Plan B in the (reasonably likely) event of mishap. - Wiggins is undeniably a destabilising influence on team morale. This being Team Sky, I reckon the decision will come down to looking at the training numbers of the guys in the squad (especially Porte), looking at Wiggo's numbers, and if he's looking significantly better than the other options, he's in the team and bugger everyone's feelings.