Chris Froome hints at his final ever race as a pro rider - "To finish at the Vuelta could be a really nice way to close the circle"

Chris Froome may hang up the wheels on his professional career at next year's Vuelta a España. The Briton, winner of the 2011 and 2017 races, was present in Madrid last night, and has admitted that this would be a good race for him to race as a professional for the final time.

Froome won the 2011 edition after Juan José Cobo was stripped of his title. That year, this was the race where Froome broke through as a Grand Tour specialist with Team Sky at the time. Ever since, the Kenya-born Briton won four Tour de France editions and finally the Giro d'Italia in 2018, his last triumph in a three-week race. Froome suffered a very hard crash during a recon at the 2019 Criterium du Dauphiné which completely changed his career. Year and a half later, after returning to the peloton, he signed with Israel - Premier Tech.

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It was a long-term millionaire contract that perfectly fit Froome, who has since struggled to achieve results. Throughout the 2023 and 2024 seasons, the veteran has been rather absent from the action and hasn't race a Grand Tour. He still has another full season in his contract and this should be his last. It's unlikely that he will race a Tour de France but the Vuelta is a realistic objective, at least his presence.

"Next year will potentially be my last season racing. To finish at the Vuelta could be a really nice way to close the circle, having started at the Vuelta to finish at the Vuelta as well," he told Eurosport in Spain. "That could be very special also".

"Next year I'm going to be 40. It was always my foal to be racing until the age of 40, so I'm getting closer to that goal. I can be very happy with everything that I've been lucky to achieve in the sport," he concluded.

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