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Flamboyant Contador downs Froome this time

By Julien Pretot PARIS (Reuters) - While other riders, including his great rival Chris Froome, use some races to fine-tune their condition or set themselves more modest objectives, Alberto Contador always has only victory in mind when he pins a bib on his jersey. Just like in 2008 and 2012, the years of his previous triumphs, the Spaniard used this season's Vuelta as a rebound race and it worked perfectly as he won his sixth grand tour title. After keeping his cards close to his chest, the Tinkoff-Saxo rider captured the lead in the second week and never lost focus, adding flamboyance to his victory by beating Froome in the two queen stages. Six years ago, Contador rode - and won - the Giro d'Italia and the Tour of Spain because his then Astana team had been left out of the Tour de France because of their doping past. In 2012, the Vuelta was his comeback grand Tour as he was forced to miss the Tour de France because of a doping ban after he failed a test for a banned anabolic on the previous edition. This year, Contador's chances of winning the Tour de France for the third time were ruined on the 10th stage when he sustained a hairline fracture in his shinbone as he crashed at high speed in a descent. Contador even ruled himself out of the Vuelta when he said he felt he was not recovering fast enough, but changed his mind and announced he would target a stage win in the first week. He kept his promise - and went far beyond, becoming again the formidable climber he was before his doping ban. Contador moved from his hometown of Pinto to Switzerland, shifting from quantity to quality in terms of training and it finally paid off. For the first time, he managed to resist the brutal accelerations of Froome, who came to life in the third week of the Vuelta, having also crashed out of the Tour - both riders' main objective this season. In the two most demanding mountain stages, Froome was leading the way in the final climb, trying to drop Contador in his trademark style. It had worked wonders in last year's Tour but this time Contador clung on and counter-attacked to claim prestigious wins at La Farrapona and on the Puerto de Ancares. "I had to stay next to Froome and not let him get out of sight," said Contador to explain his strategy, which he could implement after claiming the overall leader's red jersey after the 10th stage individual time trial. The stage also marked the end of Colombian Nairo Quintana's chances as the Movistar rider, one of the pre-race favourites, lost ground after hitting the tarmac, abandoning in the following stage after another crash. (Editing by Mark Meadows; mark.meadows@thomsonreuters.com; +44 20 7542 7933; Reuters Messaging:; mark.meadows.reuters.com@reuters.net)