Tinkoff-Saxo’s captain Alberto Contador is ready for Sunday’s Giro di Lombardia. The 254-kilometer race, labeled by the locals as the “Race of the Falling Leaves”, is the final classic of the season and one of the last opportunities to gain World Tour points. Much is at stake, since Alberto Contador currently leads the World Tour, 14 points ahead of Valverde, who will also be at the start in Como.

“My morale is high, but it’s true that I didn’t have the best feeling during Milano-Torino, probably because it was a one-day race and I hadn’t been racing since the Vuelta. Tomorrow I’ll start the race with the ambition of doing my absolute best and we’ll see what happens,”the leader of Tinkoff-Saxo said, according to team’s official website.

Contador will clash with one of the biggest favourite to take the spoils in Il Lombardia, Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) in their battle for a top spot in the World Tour individual rankings. The Tinkoff-Saxo leader admitted that he will do his very best to defend the first position, he underlined, however, he treats it as a reflection of his outstanding 2014 season rather than an objective in itself.

“I’m currently first on the rankings and I would like to finish on the top spot this year, but it wasn’t a goal that I had at the beginning of the year. It has come as a result of a great season, but I’ve gained my points in races that have suited me, while the final two races don’t suit me just as much. I’ll give my best and enjoy the races, both in Lombardy and in China, and then I’ll take a vacation, which I really need”.

The Vuelta a Espana champion agreed with other riders, claiming this the novel course of “the race of the falling leaves” is more demanding than the one used in several previous edition. He still thinks that the final climb to Bergamo is not difficult enough to provide his with chances to beat the likes of Valverde or Rodriguez in the finale.

“The parcours for the Giro di Lombardia is near my home. I went to see the last 100 kilometers. Although the overall race could be harder than the last two years, I believe the last climb to Bergamo is too short and not demanding enough to suit me really well”.

“Everything can happen. It’s a 254-kilometer race and you never know, since it’s late in the season and it depends more on current race shape than who the favorites are normally. We have to be attentive to the movements in the race and once we get to the end, we’ll see how much power there’s left. It will be important to look for the right moment to make a move, and if the opportunity arises, we have to seize it”.