PREVIEW: Contador aiming for fifth Grand Tours win

CYCLING - Alberto Contador is one of the favourites to win the 2012 Vuelta a España. The Spaniard has already won four Grand Tours and can become the 10th rider to win a Grand Tours for the fifth time. Grand Tours are Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España. Click read more for more stats on the Vuelta which starts on Saturday.

 

• Contador can win his second Vuelta a España after his win in 2008. He also won the Tour de France twice (2007, 2009) and the Giro d’Italia once (2008).
• Russian Denis Menchov can win his third Vuelta, which would tie the record number of wins which is shared by Toni Rominger and Roberto Heras.
• David Moncoutié has already won the mountain classification for a record fourth successive time, but can equal the record of total mountain classification wins, which is five held by José Luis Laguia.
• Adam Hansen can finish in all three Grand Tours in 2012. He is the only rider still left who can achieve this feat. He finished 94th in the Tour de France and 81st in the Giro d’Italia earlier this year. Since 2005, at least one rider finished in all three Grand Tours in the same year.
• The last 11 Grand Tours are won by 11 different riders. This already ties the record from 1955-1958. If another rider besides Menchov, Contador, Alejandro Valverde or Juan José Cobo wins the Vuelta, it would mean that in the first time of cycling history 12 consecutive Grand Tours are won by 12 different riders.

 

Note: all stats are based on the provisional participant list