Chris Froome has 'unfinished business' at the Vuelta a España
With two second place finishes, Chris Froome is still looking to go all the way at the Vuelta a España

Chris Froome at the 2016 Critérium du Dauphiné. Photo: Yuzuru Sunada

Chris Froome, off the back of his Tour de France victory and Olympic bronze medal, says that he has "unfinished business" in the Vuelta a España.
Team Sky's leader, who twice placed second overall in the Spanish tour, aims to correct that in this edition, starting Staurday with a team time trial in Ourense.
Froome returned from the Rio de Janeiro Games where he placed third behind Fabian Cancellara (Trek-Segafredo) in the time trial. After the Tour de France victory on July 24 and two second places in 2011 and 2014, a Vuelta win could be on the cards.
>>> Vuelta a España 2016 start list
"I've twice finished second, and I still haven't won it, and in that sense," he said, "I've definitely got unfinished business here."
Froome's Grand Tour career took off in Spain in 2011 when he started the Vuelta to support Bradley Wiggins. He out-climbed most and shined, placing second overall after three weeks behind winner Juan José Cobo and ahead of Wiggins in third.
Sky took him took him to the Tour in 2012, again to support Wiggins, where history was made. Wiggins became the first British winner and Froome placed second.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Since then, Froome has given the Tour primary focus. In 2012, after a bronze medal in the London Olympics, he placed fourth in the Vuelta.
He won the 2013 Tour and skipped the Vuelta, pulled out of the 2014 Tour after crashing to return in the Vuelta to place second behind Alberto Contador (Tinkoff).
>>> Vuelta a España 2016 preview: The contenders
He took his second Tour title in 2015, but crashed and quit with a broken foot bone in the Vuelta. After his third Tour title this year, he wants to takwe the top step this year in Spain.
Pressed about expanding his palmarès during the Tour, Froome said. "Times have changed. With [cycling] being so much more competitive, it's harder to stay at the top for the duration of the season when you have guys targeting and training for specific events."
Froome again will face Contador, who abandoned the Tour early due to a crash and could be fresher. Also, rivals like Colombian Esteban Chaves (Orica-BikeExchange), second in the Giro d'Italia, who skipped the Tour to rest and focus specifically on the Vuelta.
Colombian Nairo Quintana (Movistar), winner of the Giro d'Italia in 2014 and third behind Froome this year in the Tour, will also start in Ourense.
"It's no secret my condition is not the same as it was in the Tour, but I have the view of trying to get that good condition back by the second half of the Vuelta," Froome said.
"My focus for the season was the Tour, then the Olympics and I'm here on the back, of that, so I haven't trained specifically for the Vuelta. But I'm motivated."
If he wins, he would become only the third cyclist in history to win the Tour/Vuelta double and the first to do so after it moved to its late-summer date. He would join a short list that includes Jacques Anquetil, winner in 1963, and Bernard Hinault, 1978.
The Vuelta starts on Saturday with a 27.8km team time trial in Ourense.
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Gregor Brown is an experienced cycling journalist, based in Florence, Italy. He has covered races all over the world for over a decade - following the Giro, Tour de France, and every major race since 2006. His love of cycling began with freestyle and BMX, before the 1998 Tour de France led him to a deep appreciation of the road racing season.
-
Can anyone stop Primož Roglič or Juan Ayuso from winning the Giro d’Italia?
Roglič and Ayuso's form suggest they are the two outright favourites for overall victory in Rome next month
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
How to watch Dwars door Vlaanderen 2025: Everything you need to live stream the cobbled Belgian Classic
All the information on broadcasters and live streams for Dwars door Vlaanderen on 2 April, as Wout van Aert, Mads Pedersen, Marianne Vos and Lotte Kopecky take on the cobbles.
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'An unprecedented opportunity for brands to be part of the evolution' - Ineos Grenadiers sponsor hunt steps up with sales agency partnership
Sportfive have been employed to find "non-endemic global partners for the team"
By Adam Becket Published
-
'We've all got a little bit extra in us this year' - Ineos Grenadiers recapture 'fighting spirit' with aggressive Paris-Nice display
British team continue to put tumultuous 2024 behind them with momentum and a new found mentality
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Could a TotalEnergies deal be the end of Ineos Grenadiers as we know them?
Reports suggested this week that Ineos could be close to signing a deal with the French petrochemical firm
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
'They’re racing with their hearts again' - Robbie McEwen on Ineos Grenadiers' bright start to 2025
The British squad have already won four times in 2025
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Ineos Grenadiers are entertaining so far this year, but how long will it last?
The British WorldTour squad have won four times already in 2025, but more than that, they have been fun. Is this the new dawn?
By Adam Becket Published
-
Caleb Ewan says he was put in a 'bad situation' by Jayco AlUla before he joined Ineos Grenadiers
Ewan joined Ineos Grenadiers in January after spending just one year with Jayco AlUla
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
'There's no bull****, that's what I've always liked' - Geraint Thomas's first BC coach Rod Ellingworth on the retiring Welshman
The 2018 Tour de France winner will step away from professional cycling at the end of the season
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
'It is time to change goals' - Egan Bernal's coach confirms Ineos Grenadiers exit
'I want to thank all the cyclists I have had the opportunity to coach over the past ten years' Xabier Artetxe says in LinkedIn post
By Tom Thewlis Published