ON YER BIKE

Strict no d**kheads policy as cycling 'Fergie' gets tough

- MIKE WALTERS

SIR DAVE BRAILSFORD is the Fergie of cycling who was behind seven Yellow Jersey triumphs in eight years on the Tour de France.

Like the empire Sir Alex Ferguson built, Manchester United's prospective new director of elite performance operates by a code of core principles - no divas, no drama queens or, in All Blacks rugby parlance, no d***heads.

In the week United buried their favourite son, a reset of the values Sir Bobby Charlton enshrined at Old Trafford will resonate with Brailsford when he becomes a key lieutenant of Sir Jim Ratcliffe's £1.4bn investment.

Brailsford is a winner. Just ask Sir Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome and Geraint Thomas, the Brits who rolled up the Champs Elysees in triumph to win cycling's blue riband race.

His proudest moment was seeing Wiggins ring the bell to mark the opening of the London 2012 Olympics in a yellow jersey, five days after Britain's first-ever win on the Tour de France.

Now 59, it was a crowning glory for Brailsford built on an invincible team ethic and meticulous planning.