Tour riders polled: They picked Contador first, Evans was second, and Menchov third. Armstrong and Sastre were tied for fifth.

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clipped from sports.yahoo.com Sastre shrugged off all the attention heaped on Armstrong and Contador, saying he prefers to express himself “in the saddle,” not in the media spotlight. Russia’s Denis Menchov, who won the Giro d’Italia in May; Australia’s Cadel Evans, runner-up at the Tour for the last two years; and the Schleck brothers, Andy and Frank, are not to be ruled out in the title quest that ends July 26 on the Champs-Elysees in Paris. On Friday, an unofficial poll of 30 riders, race veterans and team sports directors in the French sports daily L’Equipe showed that most don’t expect Sastre to make the podium this year. They picked Contador first, Evans was second, and Menchov third. Armstrong and Sastre were tied for fifth. But Sastre believes otherwise. “I think that I am ready for this race,” he said. “Winning the Tour de France last year has changed a lot of things, but myself: I’m the same person.” But can he win again? “Yes, why not?” he said with a grin.