Oleg Tinkov has told The Guardian that Sir Dave Brailsford and Team Sky are afraid of both the Russian and his strong Tinkoff-Saxo team.

“Obviously, he is afraid of us,” says Tinkov. “Because Dave was the king, he was alone, he dominated the scene. And then I came, and I invest some money, and not only money but invest some brain. And we start to catch up to them [Team Sky]. And I hope, in 2015, we overtake them.”

Indeed, Tinkoff-Saxo have assembled a great team, headed by Grand Tour winner Alberto Contador, Tour de France King of the Mountains Rafal Majka and new signing, Slovak sprint and classics star Peter Sagan. The team has cost millions to build, and Tinkov demands an immediate return on his investments in 2015.

“I liked the expression someone used recently; they called it a 'superteam’. I like that expression,” Tinkov replies when asked if he believes he now has the 'best’ team in the world.

“The best? What does it mean? Sky, for instance, has a bigger budget. Astana has a bigger budget. According to my information, anyway. They don’t really disclose. But 'superteam’? I think it’s true. Because we are strong everywhere.”

He is strongly against Team Sky’s zero-tolerance policy to doping and Tinkov is a believer in second chances, as riders like Contador and new signing Ivan Basso have both served doping bans. He has even called Brailsford hypocritical because of his stance on doping.

“It is true,” he shrugs. “It is pure hypocrisy. I don’t know if he was pushed by his sponsor, which is [BSkyB owner Rupert] Murdoch, to say this, or whether he said it for the sponsor, but it is all hypocrisy. It is just nice marketing, if you wish. Zero tolerance? Then your members of team should not be over 30, because anyone over that age will have been involved somehow, directly or indirectly.”

But don’t mistake Tinkov for a rude man. He may not agree with Brailsford’s policies, but he has huge respect for him.

“He is very smart. What he has done for the sport ... I haven’t done even half of it yet. He has done a lot for cycling and I respect him for that. But to say such things makes him really shallow.”

Tinkov’s star man Contador will do battle with Brailsford’s champion, Chris Froome, on the roads of France at the Tour in July, to see who is best, but Tinkov believes Contador has proved he is better, after winning the 2014 Vuelta, directly beating Froome.

“For me Alberto is still the strongest and Froome is his biggest rival. I still think that if Alberto had not crashed he would have won the [2014] Tour."

But he isn’t just putting pressure on Contador. Sagan is widely regarded as the most versatile rider in the bunch, with some calling him the next Eddy Merckx. Tinkov paid a fortune to have him on his team, and he immediately wants to see Sagan win big with the team, and finally collect a Monument win.

“Sagan needs to win two classics next year. We don’t need him to win the Tour de France or even the green jersey. He will try but it’s not the goal. The goal for Sagan is Milan-Sanremo, Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. And then of course to support Alberto [at the Tour]. If he gets the green jersey it’s a nice bonus. We’ll see. Maybe we win all three. Maybe Rafal Majka wins the King of the Mountains, Pete wins the green jersey and Alberto takes the yellow!” 

Tinkov clearly has plans and believes he has the team to carry them out. He is not appreciated or understood by everyone, but Tinkov has cycling at his heart and wants the bets for the sport.

“I love the sport. I’m passionate about sport. Some people say I am bragging too much or maybe over the line, or maybe I am about myself, I am selfish. Whatever they say, I don’t care. I want to change cycling, and do what I can do. At least I’m saying something and it creates some debate.”