Bounding back after bad teeth problems forced him out of the Giro d'Italia, Australian Michael Rogers is hoping for a strong ride in the Tour de Suisse. He was second overall last year, only losing the race lead when final winner Aitor Gonzalez went on a bit attack on the final stage, and says that if he has the form he would try to do a good ride again.
"I will do the best I can," he stated. "I don't know how I am going, though. In training I have been feeling alright but racing is a different thing. So it is a bit of a case of finding my legs and seeing how I go here."
"I am not feeling too bad after the Giro. I had quite a few problems with my teeth and had an operation to fix that. I had some really bad gum infections, basically. In fixing it, I had my wisdom teeth out and then had a lot of work done under the gums, so I hope everything goes a bit better now."
Rogers is here due to those dental problems. He was due to follow a different path to the Tour, but he and team had a rethink after he pulled out in Italy. "I was originally supposed to finish the Giro and then maybe do Asturias in Spain. But I missed the last ten days in the Giro and so I feel I need a bit more racing to get into my best shape."
The 26 year old was with the Quick.Step team last year but now has changed to the magenta jersey of the T-Mobile squad. He feels that the team can do something big this July. "The team morale is really good," he stated. "Jan [Ullrich] is in really good shape and when he is good, everyone is motivated and willing to ride well."