Trek Factory Racing's Fabian Cancellara has described his injury-hit season as a physical and emotional ‘roller coaster’ but is back in action at the Vuelta a España and insists he is still hungry for success, with the world road race championships a possible objective that would give the Swiss rider true atonement after such a tough year.
Cancellara fractured two vertebra after crashing while wearing the yellow jersey at the Tour de France on the stage to Huy. He was caught up in the high-speed crash that left William Bonnet (FDJ) in a neck brace and numerous others battered and bruised. He suffered similar fractures on different sides of the same vertebra at the E3 Harelbeke race in March, meaning he's missed all of the Spring Classics. Illness before the Tour de Suisse and even a bout of flu last week further hit his form and moral but he told Cyclingnews during an exclusive interview that he is still motivated as he looks to start his season all over again and build a base for 2016 – his final season in the professional peloton.
“This season has been a real roller coaster for me but I’m still motivated. If I look back I’ve had some good moments, some really successful moments, like winning Oman and wearing yellow at the Tour but then some real low moments with crashes and illness too,” he said from Marbella as the hours count down to the start of the Vuelta a España.
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“The ups and down have made I hard to bounce back. But I’ve been lucky that I still won some big races when I did come back and so proved that I could still be successful and deserve my place in the peloton. But it hasn’t been easy that’s for sure.”
Cancellara has not raced since crashing at speed during the third stage of the Tour de France. A Grand Tour is not an ideal place to return to racing but he has the experience of riding 18 Grand Tours to know how to pace his effort and rebuild his form day after day.
“Your head is your head but your legs are your legs…” Cancellara says in Italian, mixing cycling philosophy with crude logic.
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
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