CHARTRES, France -- For Bradley Wiggins, the Champagne on the Champs-Elysees is about to flow. He all but locked up Tour de France victory with a tour-de-force in winning the final time trial, putting him on the cusp of becoming the first Briton to win cyclings showpiece race. Wiggins blew away the field in Saturdays race against the clock in Stage 19, his second stage victory in a time trial, his specialty. "I really wanted to go out there and finish with a bang, and fortunately I was able to do that," said Wiggins, who noted the breadth of emotion for his historic achievement when he spotted his mechanic in tears. Even before the Tour, Wiggins was the favourite. But in the yellow jersey since Stage 7, he had to handle questions about the unity of his Sky Team, pre-race preparations, and ability to get up mountains -- all of which he put to rest. There was also the absence of two-time Tour champion and cycling superstar Alberto Contador, whos serving out a doping ban, that led many to question whether Wiggins was really the sports best. Wiggins has been vocal in his criticism of doping in cycling and said the sport may be changing after tough new controls put in place by the sports governing body, the UCI, in recent years to battle drugs cheats. "I think the Tour is a lot more human now with everything the UCI is doing," he said, suggesting that dopers -- and their intermittently incredible performances -- are being rinsed from the peloton. The three-time Olympic track champion made the tricky transition to road racing, and said he was driven to win this Tour after crashing out a year ago with a broken collarbone. He envied Australias Cadel Evans, who had the elation of winning the 2011 race. "That was my motivation: I want to feel whats hes feeling," Wiggins recalled. The Team Sky leader obliterated the pack in the 53.5-kilometre ride from Bonneval to Chartres and punched the air and shouted as he crossed the finish line. Again this year, Sundays ride to the finish on Paris Champs-Elysees will be largely ceremonial -- his three-minute lead was too large for any competitor to erase over the 120 kilometres from Rambouillet. And besides, second-placed was teammate and countryman Christopher Froome. Wiggins sighed and looked skyward as he hoisted the winners bouquet. "I have a lot of emotion right now," he said. "Its the stuff of dreams to win the final time trial and seal the Tour." Wiggins was timed in 1 hour, 4 minutes, 13 seconds. Froome was second, 1:16 behind. Luis Leon Sanchez of Spain was third, 1:50 back. Overall, Wiggins has a 3:21 lead over Froome. Italys Vincenzo Nibali was third, 6:19 back. Riders set off one-by-one in the race against the clock in reverse order of the standings, and Wiggins dominance was evident from the first time check. He was 12 seconds ahead of Froome after (13 kilometres). Wiggins had a formidable lead coming into the stage. His only threat of any kind was from Froome, a successful time-trial rider, and less so from Nibali, whos not quite as strong in this discipline. Despite rumblings about behind-the-scenes competition between them, Froome proved a faithful teammate to the end. "As we saw today, hes stronger than me," Froome told French TV, after hugging Wiggins. "Im very happy. The (Sky) goal this year was to win the Tour with Bradley. To be second (for me) is an added plus." The standings below them were the biggest question mark: Whether young American Tejay Van Garderen could overtake Jurgen Van Den Broeck for fourth -- he didnt -- or whether Frenchman Pierre Rolland, a strong climber but not a time-trialer, would stay in the top 10. He did. The main change at the top concerned Evans. He was passed by BMC teammate Van Garderen despite a three-minute head start and fell one spot to seventh in the overall standings. The mostly flat course passed fields of corn and wheat into Chartres, known for its towering cathedral with asymmetrical spires. The route presented few challenges other than the breeze. In the last 10 kilometres, Wiggins thoughts turned to his family. Born in Belgium, he was raised by a single mother in the working-class area of Kilburn in northwest London. His father, a former racing cyclist, was largely absent from his life; he died in 2008. "Just thinking back to my childhood. My father leaving us when I was a kid and growing up with my mum in a flat," Wiggins said, recalling his grandfathers death during the 2010 Tour. "My grandfather brought me up -- he was my father role-model." Wiggins also gave a nod to the legions of British fans who have flocked into France to watch the race, some dressing up as English knights or unfurling Union Jacks in their car windows. "Thats something that touches me more because its difficult for the English with the French," Wiggins told French TV, in French, "because I know France doesnt like the English." Wiggins has been the odds-on favourite to win after showing dazzling form with three stage-race victories this season. He was fourth in the 2009 Tour and 24th in 2010. This Tour has been about as favourable as it could come for Wiggins: He is among the worlds top time-trialists. Mountains, not his specialty, carried relatively less importance this time. But he proved through two days in the Alps and two in the Pyrenees that hes among the best climbers, too. 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In the other group of the medal match-play format, Lee Westwood beat Webb Simpson by one shot and Justin Rose defeated Hunter Mahan by four strokes.NEW YORK -- A decade ago, Raul Ibanez and Ichiro Suzuki watched Seattle teammate Freddy Garcia establish him as a big winner with a big fastball. On Sunday, with the trio now dressed in Yankees pinstripes, they saw Garcia win yet again with a much different repertoire. Garcia posted his 150th career victory while Ibanez homered and drove in three runs as New York wrapped up a long and losing homestand by beating the Mariners 6-2. "For me, its another win," Garcia said. "Hopefully, more are coming." Garcia (5-5) hung around for five innings on a sticky afternoon and preserved a one-run lead with his final pitch, retiring Kyle Seager with two runners on base. A two-time All-Star with the Mariners, the 35-year-old Garcia has since bounced all over the majors. In and out of the rotation this season, he ended a string of three straight losing starts and improved to 150-100. Garcia wins these days with guile instead of gas. He got the young Mariners hitters to swing at off-speed pitches all around the strike zone. "Hes had to reinvent himself," Ibanez said. "Its really his will and determination thats made him great." Suzuki has seen the transformation, too. "Back in 2001, he was throwing 95, 96 (mph)," Suzuki said through a translator. "The pitchers who can make that adjustment are going to be successful. Some cant." The AL East-leading Yankees won for only the sixth time in 16 games. They went 4-5 against Boston, Baltimore and Seattle on their longest stay in the Bronx so far this season. On Monday night, theyll face Tigers ace Justin Verlander in Detroit. Garcia is the top winner in major league history among pitchers born in Venezuela. Johan Santana is next with 139 and Seattle star Felix Hernandez is farther down with 95. "I still have the record," Garcia kidded. Boone Logan, David Robertson and Rafael Soriano combined for four innings of hitless relief. "We kind of laboured through that game there," Mariners manager Eric Wedge said. "We still need to get better with our pitch selection." Ibanez hit his 15th homer in the fifth, a solo drive off Hisashi Iwakuma (2-3) that put the Yankees ahead 4-2. Ibanez delivered again in the sixth with a two-out, two-run single off Oliver Perez with the bases loaded. Suzuki coontinued to be a one-hit wonder.dddddddddddd The Yankees newcomer extended his hitting streak to 12 games, all since being traded from Seattle to New York, when his routine fly got lost in the sun and fell for a seventh-inning double. Suzuki has gotten exactly one hit in each of those 12 games -- Willy Aybar was the last big leaguer with such an odd streak, getting a single hit in 13 straight for the Dodgers in 2006, STATS LLC said. Suzuki said he was getting more comfortable with his surroundings. That includes dealing with a tough glare in the outfield, and he looked into the sun for a stumbling catch. "If it was getting harder and harder every day, Im not worthy of wearing the Yankee uniform," he said. Jesus Montero hit a pair of RBI singles for the short-handed Mariners, who had won eight of nine. Shortstop Brendan Ryan was out a day after being hit by a pitch on the left elbow. Mike Carp singled home the games only run Saturday, then went to California after the game for the birth of his daughter. The Mariners are the top-fielding team in the majors, though it hardly looked that way in the early innings. In the first, centre fielder Michael Saunders made an ill-advised throw, third baseman Chone Figgins had a ball pop out of his glove and Seager stayed back on the grass on Mark Teixeiras grounder to second and played it into an RBI single. The next inning, first baseman Dustin Ackley let Curtis Grandersons hard grounder skip through his legs for a two-out error that scored a run. Derek Jeter added an RBI single in the fourth. NOTES: Injured RHP Mariano Rivera, LHP Andy Pettitte, 3B Alex Rodriguez and OF Brett Gardner joined the rest of the Yankees to greet season ticket-holders lined up on the warning track before the game for Photo Day. Pettitte said he was going for another X-ray on his broken left leg, and Girardi said after the game that the longtime ace was "definitely better." The Yankees still hope he can pitch again in September. Girardi said it was "99.9 per cent" certain Rivera (torn right knee) wouldnt return this year and that there was a chance the speedy Gardner (right elbow) could be activated next month, if only to pinch run. ... Carp is expected to rejoin the team Monday night in Baltimore. Wedge said Ryans injury is day-to-day. ' ' '