Merckx in Suisse to build form

By Shane Stokes in Arlesheim

While his Phonak team is racing on home soil, Axel Merckx said at the end of stage three that his big goal is to build form rather than chase a high stage result in the Tour de Suisse. "My goal for the race is to finish, I don’t have any other targets here," he stated. "I am trying to get ready for July, to do a good Tour de France. It is very important for the team. My form is building at the moment."

Merckx was very composed at the line, speaking to spectators in a very relaxed manner moments after the bunch thundered home. He looked more like a rider who had just been out on a club run rather than in a 187.5 kilometre-ProTour stage, but said that it was a tough day in the saddle. "It was really fast out there. It was a really hard course and obviously we were going really fast too," he added.