Wiggins on 2011: ‘My best season yet’

Bradley Wiggins says he will only be more confident going into next year’s Tour de France after a breakthrough 2011 campaign that saw him win the Criterium du Dauphiné and finish third at the Vuelta a España.

Though his hopes were dashed at the Tour de France when he crashed out in stage 7 with a broken collarbone, Wiggins was able to rebound for the Vuelta and then ride to the silver medal in the world time trial championships in Denmark.

“It’s been my best year to date. As much as two years ago was a breakthrough in the Tour de France (when he finished fourth with Garmin), this has been a real breakthrough year for me in terms of consistency at the top in the big races,” Wiggins said on Team Sky’s website. “That’s been the biggest thing and I guess being considered a hitter or contender whenever I go to a race is something I’ve always wanted to achieve.”

Wiggins has already said that next year’s Tour will take precedent over the London Olympic Games. Following his big season, Wiggins says the Tour will be season’s main target, with the final podium as the goal.

“So in that sense of what we want to achieve next year — which is going as high up as we can at the Tour de France — it’s a confirmation,” he continued. “I guess the biggest thing for me this year was never dwelling too much on the successes I had and instead be always looking forward to the next target. I think that’s continuing right now — we’re already looking towards next year and planning for it — and not resting on any laurels.”