The Cardiff Blues flanker has led Wales to repeated success in the past six years and done so in an impeccable manner.
Reporting for day one in camp with the Wales squad on Monday, Warburton sat down with the media to review his time as captain and discuss how he is focused on his performance.
“For me the goal has always been to play as well as I can and to perform for my club and country,” said Warburton.
“It has been a massive honour to captain my country but ever since I was young, all I have wanted is to make the Wales squad and make the Blues squad. When I sit down at the start of the season and think what I want to achieve, captaincy hasn’t been a part of that, it’s been a bonus.
“The priority has always been to make the national team. The one thing I have never wanted is to become complacent, I want the right to wear the jersey on form. This is the best decision for me to allow me to focus on my performance.
“Not having the captaincy allows me to have a little bit more freedom. Even though you are in a team sport, you do still need to be selfish, and performance has to be the number one priority, that’s why this is the best thing.
“I think one of the great things about this campaign is that in any Six Nations squad I’ve been involved in, this is probably the most open selection. It’s extremely competitive and it’s a credit to Wales really.
“If we only had one player who was a banker in each position, I’d be slightly concerned and I’ve said that in the past. But it’s great we’ve got genuine strength in depth and guys like Dan Lydiate are injured. It’s probably most competitive in the back-row department and that will help drive the players in training as we all want to be in the 23 for Italy. Hopefully it will bring out the best in everyone.
“There are so many good sixes and sevens in the squad, that you have really got to bring your A game just to get in the 23. There is so much competition, and that’s what I want, to try to bring the best out of me.”
Warburton, who is part of Wales’ leadership group, was full of praise for new skipper Alun Wyn Jones.
“Your captain has got to be somebody who is as close to a guaranteed start as you can get in international rugby. He needs to be someone who is respected by all the players, a very good professional on and off the field. That is why I think for me Alun Wyn is a standout candidate because he has had that in bucketloads.
“Ever since I have been involved he has had that and the role he has played probably won’t change too much really because he has had such a massive influence on the squad since I have been captain, all he has to do is keep doing what he is doing, then all he does is take the armband onto that field when it is Test match time.
“Alun Wyn is a vastly experienced player and he has more experience than me at international level. He knows I’m there for him whenever he wants but he’s been and seen pretty much everything in this game. That’s what makes him such a great candidate to be captain.
“Wales has a great group of leaders and that is really important. A captain needs a bunch of guys beneath him who can do a lot of the ground work for him during the week in terms of organising things or the decision making.
“You need guys around you and I leaned heavily on guys like Alun Wyn, Jamie Roberts, Jonathan Davies and Ken Owens. They’ve had a big role to play when I was captain so I want to make sure I have that role and can help Alun as much as I can. It’s not a one-man job. The guys we have in the Welsh squad are very experienced and great guys to lean on. We need to make sure we do that well for Alun Wyn this season.”
