Oleg Tinkov has said that only for his criticism of world champion Peter Sagan the Slovak would not have been as successful as he has been in the last 12 months. The Tinkoff team owner is set to leave the sport at the end of the season and suggested his star rider is bound for Bora-Argon 18.
By Brian Canty
Outspoken Tinkoff team owner Oleg Tinkov has said he is the reason Peter Sagan is world champion.
The Russian billionaire, who is set to pull out of the sport at the end of the year, also suggested that only for his criticism of the Slovak he’d never have won some of the races he has over the last 12 months or so.
“After my criticism last year, he started winning straight away,” Tinkov said in an interview at the Tour, referring to a tirade he gave to the media after a below-par spring campaign last year.
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“He won TOC (Tour of California) and then he was very good at the Tour in green.
“He won some other races and then he became the world champion. Then there’s no problem. It’s as simple as that,” he added.
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Tinkoff contemplated reducing Sagan's salary because of a lack of top results but the latter then turned things around dramatically.
He went on to win the overall title at the Tour of California, a stage at the Tour de Suisse, the green jersey at the Tour de France, a stage at the Vuelta a Espana and indeed the world title in the US. No coincidence, believes Tinkov.
“We’re in an expensive business. You write a cheque for €5 million and you have a contract or three years and then you realise he’s not won… what can do you because you still have to pay the contract?
“You don't have any other tools other than to voice your opinion and criticise him. I think I deserve that with how much money I’m paying him.
“I still think that his results after are based off my criticism. After I criticised him, he immediately won TOC and since then we’ve not had any issues.”
Speaking on Sagan’s future, Tinkov was adamant he was headed for Sam Bennett’s Bora-Argon 18 team, despite the latter denying such notions.
“According to my information Bora paid him even more (than €5 million)… I mean that’s the market.
“I know for definite he got more. I’m not going to disclose the number, I know even the number.
“But he signed for much more money than I paid him. That’s a fact."
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