Romain Bardet no longer seeks happiness racing for overall classification at Grand Tours: "I'm not going to target it at all anymore!"

Romain Bardet concluded his third Vuelta a Espana in 21th place overall, the classification he never really targeted. His main focus was on stages where the 32-year old came close to success on two occasions. Bardet thus won't be leaving Spain satisfied nor entirely disappointed he tells Eurosport.

"Personally, this will not remain an unforgettable edition. Except that it was nice to win a team time trial. Individually, each time, I came across a little stronger. On the two guys who marked this Vuelta! That's it, that's how it is, that's the bike... Otherwise, the sensations were quite good and that was a good point. I feel like I fought well and I'm proud of that. But, afterward, in terms of results, it's not America!"

Bardet however highlighted the great collective performance of his teammates. "A good collective result. We won the team time trial and a stage with Alberto Dainese is good. We were active in this Vuelta, we were in a lot of breakaways."

Despite this mixed record, Romain Bardet, on the other hand, confirmed his desire to become a stage chaser rather than remaining confined to a leadership role for the general classification which no longer attracts him. "The general? I'm not going to target it at all anymore! It suits me that way. I'm lucky to have this freedom in the DSM team, to be able to do it. You saw what it turned out on this Vuelta... I've had enough success to know how hard and thankless it is. One off day and everything is over. That's not why it's easier to win a stage, but at least we have satisfaction by being at the front," concluded the Frenchman.