Davis targeting Milan - San Remo, Tour

Contador’s move to Saxo Bank-SunGard for the 2011 season has opened doors for Davis to realise some of his biggest career goals.

“It’s pretty difficult to say, I know Alberto pretty well, we’ve raced together for a long time, but for me, personally, as a professional bike rider it leaves a lot more opportunities open for me, especially being a rider who can take stages in the Grand Tours,’’ Davis said.

“Having Alberto there you’ve really got to take a team to win the overall because he can.

“I’m really looking forward to the opportunities that I’ve been looking for the last five years to go into, especially the Tour de France, as the captain of a team.”

Despite the apparent opportunities the 30-year-old is not being over zealous in his approach to the season in which he has identified Milan-San Remo, the Tour and the world championships as major objectives.

“It’s exciting but you’ve got to take it a step at a time and that’s what I’m doing,’’ he said.

“You learn a lot over the years and you learn not to count the chickens before they hatch but up until now, apart from the floods, everything’s gone to plan.”

The Bundaberg cyclist lives in Queensland during the off-season and his family and friends have been affected by floods in the area.

Davis arrived in Geelong this week ahead of the Bay Cycling Classic criterium series, which kicks off a month of racing in Australia including the national road championships and Tour Down Under.

Davis, with his end-of-season objectives in mind, had a relatively relaxed start to this season doing base work but less intensity training.

He finished 2010 with a bronze medal in the men’s road race world championship and a week later won gold in the same event at the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

Davis has adopted the opposite approach ahead of 2011, training with the spring classics in mind, and will use the Bay Classic to build on intensity.

“As I’m getting older I’m getting more suited to those style of races (spring classics) so I’d like to really attack them with full confidence and try and get a good result for the team or for myself there, have a break after Amstel Gold Race and then prepare for the Tour de France,’’ he said.

“It would be a dream come true if I could win a stage there.”

Davis aims to improve on his 2007 result at Milan-San Remo next year and is hopeful of a top 10 finish at the Tour of Flanders.

“I think I’m very capable of winning Milan-San Remo,’’ he said.

“That’ll be on top of the agenda and hopefully I go one better than the second I got in 2007.”

Davis won three stages and the overall at the 2009 Tour Down Under and will have the full support of his Astana team, which includes Victorian and new team signing Simon Clarke, at the January 16-23 event.

“I think time bonuses are a huge aspect of the Tour Down Under and hopefully I can be in the top three leading into the Willunga stage and I can be thereabouts in the overall,’’ he said.

He finished second overall at the 2008 Bay Classic and is eyeing a result at the 22nd edition of the race from January 2-5.

“I don’t think I’m too far off, probably even a little bit better, than the condition I had that year,’’ he said.