Peter Kennaugh was one of the stars of last year’s Tour de France and the Manxman on Team Sky is looking forward to animating more races in 2014.

He was also excellent in the Dauphine and has just recently performed well in the Ruta del Sol, helping Richie Porte to second overall. But it was the Tour that was his greatest moment:

“That was a highlight for me,” he admits unsurprisingly. “That’s why I’ve been more motivated than ever this season, because now I’ve had a taste of what it’s all about - riding onto the Champs-Elysees and experiencing stages like Mont Ventoux and Alpe d’Huez. My performances there gave me a lot of confidence going into this year. I’m fitter than ever and ready to go again.”

Now that he has the taste for top level racing, he wants more in 2014:

“It’s not just about getting in that Tour team, but to be more of a crucial part of it.”

"I’d love to try and step into the area Richie (Porte) is in - going further onto the climbs. But it’s not just about the Tour this year as I’ve been working a lot on my time trialling. I want to progress my stage racing abilities and see if I can maybe get a win or some GC placings in other races.”

Kennaugh certainly has the raw talent to become one of the best stage racers in the peloton. But he is not putting any pressure on himself just yet and just wants to keep riding now that his focus is on the road rather than the boards of the velodrome.

“"I just want to keep my head down and let the legs do the talking. I’m not one to say ‘I want to do this’ and just put pressure on myself for no reason."

Kennaugh is aware that as of 2014, 2013 counts for very little and he will need to perform well in 2014 to be on the Tour’s start line in Yorkshire.

"You can’t just go on what you did last year," he reasons. "I’ll have to prove myself in the first couple of races this season and hopefully I can get an opportunity. I’ve got Coppa Bartali on my programme this year and I think it’s quite a young team there - maybe a race like that I could be more of an influence rather than just getting around."

"Basically, it's about being fit enough and ready to race rather than playing catch-up, which I was doing for a lot of last year."

Kennaugh played catch up last year as a result of a bad heel injury, but this year he has had no such worries and is ready to have his best season on the road yet:

"I came back in November, went to Calpe in Spain, and got into a good routine. Since then I’ve been pretty switched on. [The heel therapy] has done the job. I’ve been able to train harder, longer and better than I’ve been able to do any other winter. I’ve been really consistent with my training."

Big things await the young man from the Isle of Man and it could be his face we see drilling the pace on the big climbs for Sky and Chris Froome come July.