Can SKY win the TdF with Bradley Wiggins?

Team SKY is a British team whose main purpose is to bring home the Yellow Jersey back to England. Its pockets are very deep, with the money coming from Rupert Murdoch, the media baron.

The team leader the past three years is Bradley Wiggins, a dour and quirky rider who was a former Olympic champion on the track before metamorphosing into a Tour contender. Last year, he was one of the favorites but had to quit after breaking his collarbone on stage 7.

This year, the 32yo Wiggins is the favorite going into the Tour. Without Alberto Contador (banned for doping) and Andy Schleck (injury), and with more than 100K of time trials, the odds are stacked in his favor. But is it, really?

The problem with SKY is an abundance of riches. Last year, they signed Mark Cavendish, the current World Champion and the winningest rider in the Tour this year with 20 stage wins. He also won the Green Jersey as the Tours best sprinter from 2008-11.

So why am I saying that Cavendish is the fly in SKY's ointment, when he is an exceptional rider? To win the Tour, a leader needs the services and loyalty of his 8 teammates. There is no time for personal glory. It is common knowledge that it is almost impossible to win the Yellow Jersey when you also are aiming to win the Green Jersey and a few stages along the way.

If you recall, Lance Armstrong had the same formula in his 7-year reign. His US POSTAL teammate had practically blinders on them, and their main purpose for existence was simple– to deliver LA to be at the best position to take the Yellow Jersey.

With Cavendish on the team, he'll need his own posse of at least three riders for the sprint leaving Wiggins with just five domestiques. IMO, it’s not enough to take control of the race during the crunch.

On the other hand, SKY just could not leave Cavendish to look for his sweet spot in the last 2oK's of the race. He needs to be sheltered, again, so that he'll be at the best position to start the sprint.

SKY should have read the history of the defunct team TELEKOM. The German outfit was also one of the richest teams from the mid-90's to the mid-2000. They also had Jan Ullrich and Erik Zabel, contenders for both yellow and green respectively. In that span of time that they were teammates, Ullrich won the Yellow Jersey once and Zabel won the green jersey six times! Probably one of other reason of Ullrich's failure (the main reason of course was LA) to win another Tour was because of division of the teamdomestiques.

Apparently, the SKY management believes it can win both jerseys in one year. I think that its déjà vu all over again.

Finally, another problem with SKY is Chris Froome. In last years' VueltaaEspana, the Kenyan-born Brit was working his butt off for Wiggins but turned out a better ride than Wiggins. If SKY had decided to support Froome earlier, SKY would have won its first Grand Tour. Instead, Froome would lose the Vuelta by 13 seconds! Wiggins was third @1min39sec. Early this season, Froome has been suffering again from a parasitic infection but he is doing well right now.