Astana’s Belgian manager Johan Bruyneel says there is a ”certain incompatibility” between Spanish rider Alberto Contador and Lance Armstrong of the United States even as he minimized the friction between the two team leaders on the Tour de France.
”There was never a ‘click’ between the two, I don’t know why,” he said in an interview published in top-selling daily newspaper El Pais, adding however that ”there was never as much friction” between the two as was reported.
Relations between Contador and Armstrong, which were tense since the start of the Tour de France, appear to have improved since the Spanish rider took the yellow jersey on Sunday during the first Alpine stage of the race to become the favourite to win the event.
It was the first time that he pulled on the yellow jersey since his Tour win in 2007.
Bruyneel said he ”always thought that only Alberto could win” the Tour even if he was ”surprised” by Armstrong’s level at some moments.
”The logic says that Contador was the strongest, before and during the race,” said Bruyneel who is a personal friend of Armstrong, a seven-time winner of the cycling race.
Bruyneel also confirmed that he would soon leave Astana to form a new team with Armstrong, because it was ”unthinkable” for him to continue to lead the Kazakhstan team in the event that Kazakh rider Alexandre Vinokourov returns to it after a suspension for doping as is expected.
Asked about Contador’s possible participation in this new project, he said it was unlikely because of the ”incompatibility” between the two.
He also denied, in response to a question from El Pais, that Nike would be the sponsor of his new project, which will be formally announced on Wednesday. — AFP
