Right move, wrong goal

Alberto Contador's move from Astana to Bjarne Riis' new and improved Saxo Bank-Sungard squad has all the hallmarks of the right move at the right time.

Alberto Contador's move from Astana to Bjarne Riis' new and improved Saxo Bank-Sungard squad has all the hallmarks of the right move at the right time.

In making the jump, Contador has not only strengthened Riis' hand in winning another Grand Tour but also improved his own prospects of adding to his personal Tour tally.

What we're seeing is a mating of arguably the strongest ProTour squad with the best Grand Tour rider of his generation.

And in all likelihood Contador will be supported by a younger, possibly stronger version of Saxo Bank if you believe all the transfer rumours.

Also likely to join Contador at the Danish team will be a contingent of Spaniards prepared to die in a ditch for him.

Expect to see guys like Benjamin Noval, Daniel Navarro, David De La Fuente join the likes of Jakob Fuglsang, Richie Porte Matti Breschel, Chris Anker Sorensen and Fabian Cancellara in helping Contador rack up a fourth Tour win.

Add that up and Saxo Bank-Sungard will again be a powerful, hard-to-beat squad - even more so with Contador at the helm.

And what of the mooted loss of veterans like Stuart O'Grady and Jens Voigt to the new Luxembourg based formation the now departed Schleck Brothers are rumored to be joining?

Well I see that as a win for Riis and Contador - there is only so much those two battered bodies have left to give.

Both O'Grady and Voigt are effectively at the very end of their respective careers and I'm betting both don't have much left in the tank, and I'm pretty damn sure the hardheaded Riis is thinking exactly the same thing.

Sure, both O'Grady and Voigt represent a significant loss of leadership, but with Riis in control, Cancellara the 'patron' of the peloton and Contador clearly able to win despite unsettled internal team dynamics, it will be hard to bet against them.

And what of Andy and Frank Schleck and their new team? Well at this stage of the game there are more unknowns than knowns. Officially, we still don't know who the Schlecks will be riding for.

We'll have to let the cycling rumour mill ruminate over the possibilities until we hit the official September 1st transfer market date.

Finally I have to address what I consider to be a bit of irrational exuberance by Contador and Riis - maybe the press conference was at altitude.

"Alberto's ambition is to win all three major stage races in the same year, and I want to be part of it, it is not certain that it will be next year, but the ambition is to succeed in one of the next few years. I believe that it is feasible," said Bjarne Riis at the presser announcing Contador's signing.

Say what? I'll have what they're having.

I think the 2010 Tour de France conclusively proved that goal (fantasy?) is utterly out of reach. The sport has changed too much for any rider to dominate the grand tours for an entire season.

Riders like Ivan Basso and Denis Menchov can attest to that fact.

Basso came into the Tour de France with high hopes but legless after winning the Giro, fading to finish almost an hour behind the winner. A similar situation to Menchov in 2009.

This time around, Menchov passed on defending his 2009 Giro title and was richly rewarded with a podium place in Paris.

Over the three weeks the Russian showed strength and consistency and was rarely out of sight of Contador or Schleck - he did not leave his legs in Italy as he did in 2009.

Riis not only risks burning out Contador but his entire team if he chooses to pursue that goal - best to focus on something achievable - eclipsing Lance Armstrong's seven Tour titles.