Wiggins: No pressure, only excitement ahead of the Tour

Bradley Wiggins today shrugged off the burden of being the Tour de France favourite, saying that he cannot wait to get going in the world's biggest race.

Speaking from Mallorca, where he is carrying out his final preparations before the Tour starts a week on Saturday, the Sky rider spoke about how he is enjoying being the man many are tipping for overall success.

"It's a good thing. I'm in this position now because I've done well," he said. "I've been on the opposite side before - I remember going into the 2010 Tour answering all the same questions but knowing I didn't have the form. That's a different kind of pressure.

"We did a session today and the numbers were amazing and it's like 'bloody hell, this is exciting stuff'. It's excitement now, and it's about putting that into practice."

Wiggins has spent a number of days on the island alongside his family, and will only travel to Belgium (where the Tour starts) next Wednesday.

He will sacrifice defending his National Road Race title to taper in Majorca; Wiggins listed the benefits of heading overseas.

"It was always the plan to come here and get back into the mountains. You finish the Dauphine, and there's four weeks until you start the mountains in the Tour. That's a long period. Training in the heat means I don't have to do it in my garden shed. It's about making things more comfortable going into these final days," said Wiggins.