VERBANIA: Whenever Alberto Contador "smells blood" in a major bike race like the Giro d'Italia that ends on Sunday in Milan, there is virtually no stopping him, Michael Rogers says.
That says something, considering Rogers, 35, is Contador's entrusted "road captain" who shoulders a hefty load in the mountains to help the Spaniard and also organises the other teammates to follow their race plan.
Inevitably, that plan ends with Contador firing off attacks and often coming out the winner. Little wonder the 32-year-old from Pinto, near Madrid, is nicknamed "El Pistolero".
"He has a very strong character," a smiling Rogers says while standing outside the Tinkoff-Saxo team bus after Thursday's 18th stage from Melide to Verbania. "Once he makes up his mind, that is it ... I try to give him some choices … I never tell him exactly what to do, but if you give him options he will certainly think about it. But when he sees that opportunity, he smells blood … he is the first one to go."
Tinkoff-Saxo rider Alberto Contador climbs during the 170km, 18th stage of the Giro d'Italia.Credit: POOL
So strong is the fire in Contador's belly, Rogers says, that the six-time grand tour winner will even attack when others would think better of it, or at least think twice. "Sometimes it might not make a 100 per cent tactical sense to attack from a long way out, but he goes because he feels good and sees an opportunity," Rogers says. "That is why it is so inspiring to ride for a guy like that. You know that if you give 100 per cent – and especially if he sees a team that is in good shape and giving him 100 per cent – that he will double down and do his best as well."
As Rogers speaks, the Giro had just finished the first of its last three mountain stages, the others being Friday's 19th stage to Cervinia and Saturday's 20th stage to Sestriere before Sunday's sprinters finale into Milan. Contador is clearly in control of affairs. Rogers, who has ridden with Tinkoff-Saxo since 2013, continues to be amazed by Contador's "grinta" – or grit – against the odds.
He showed that trait in last year's Tour, by riding 10km with a fractured tibia after crashing in stage 10 before abandoning and then returning to win the Vuelta a Espana two months later. Then in this year's Giro, Contador suffered two shoulder dislocations after a crash on stage six.
Steven de Jongh, one of Tinkoff-Saxo's sports directors, is still amazed by Contador's response.
Spain's Aberto Contador celebrates on the podium of the 18th stage.Credit: Luca Zennaro
"We were all in the bus like this …," de Jongh says, holding his head in his hands with a look of shock to relive the moment. "But as soon as we knew there was no fracture, no ripped tendons, Alberto said, 'It's no option to go home.' Alberto said he would deal with the pain and continue."
That Contador did, but then to be so dominant in the 21-stage race as it headed into Friday's 19th stage in the Alps from Gravellona Toce to Cervinia was amazing. His lead then was 5m 15s on Spaniard Mikel Landa (Astana) and 6m 5s on Italian Fabio Aru (Astana).
Contador and his Tinkoff-Saxo teamates have never baulked from the fulfilling responsibility of being one of the two dominant teams in the race with Astana. But they have also responded repeatedly to attempts by Astana to bring them undone.
What Astana will throw at Contador between now and Sunday's finish in Milan after 21 stages is anyone's guess, even if Landa and Aru are way down on time.
Some believe that Astana's aggressive tactics have been aimed at tiring Contador before the Tour, in order to give last year's Giro winner, Italian Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) who has skipped Giro, a better chance of winning the Tour, which is his focus this year.
"I already heard that before the Giro started. It's smart," de Jongh says when asked for his view.
Rogers, who will also back up from the Giro to race the Tour that starts on July 4, agrees with de Jongh.
"I think it is a valid point," Rogers says. "We are not wasting too much energy thinking about the Tour at the moment. These grand tours seem to be coming more and more competitive and we are spending all our energy on this one at the moment. We will cross the Tour bridge, I think, when it comes …We've been pretty busy here. But saying that, it [backing up the Tour] is in the back of our minds and Alberto is the first one to want to win all the races that he starts. He is a real fighter isn't he?"
However, Rogers says Tinkoff-Saxo have long "anticipated" such thinking from their rivals too, not to mention the inherent demands of trying to win back-to-back grand tours.
Hence, Rogers says that he, Contador and the other riders on Tinkoff-Saxo who are due to race the grand tour double have deliberately raced less this season. "It worked quite well for me last year," Rogers says.
"So hopefully we can finish this [Giro] off and then we all kind of have that week completely off the bike and rebuild for the Tour."
Rupert Guinness is covering the Giro d'Italia as a guest of Eurosport. Eurosport are covering every stage live, up to and including the final stage into Milan on Sunday.