A new main sponsor would be cool. Although I think it's hard for any of the pre-race favourites to do something in the GC, but I don't know, sometimes things can change dramatically.
Today's stage is only difficult during its first half. After a short but steep climb after 79 km, the rest is mostly flat. Except for a breakaway, no large time gaps are expected.
Dominik's Pre-Race Comment
As we now have the leading jersey, we seek to defend it which should be possible. To ease things up for us we will again try to send someone into the break, me being one of the candidates.
Live Ticker
Km 3:
Tiziano Dall'Antonia is among the first escapees.
.
Km 14:
No break is stable yet, Dall'Antonia is still in the lead.
.
Km 26:
Dall'Antonia leads together with Gorka Izagirre half a minute in front of five other escapees. The pack is two minutes behind.
.
Km 30:
The Italian wins the mountain sprint. Shortly afterwards, he reunites with four other to form the leading group. Among them is Benat Intxausti. Four riders are between them and the pack.
.
Km 43:
Mountain sprint No. 2 for Dall'Antonia as well!
.
Km 60:
At the second intermediate sprint, again won by Tiziano Dall'Antonia, the escapees are almost 7 minutes in front. Apart from the Liquigas rider and Intxausti, they are: Gorka Izagirre (Euskaltel), Eddy Ratti (Barbot) and Babtiste Plackaert (Landbouwkrediet).
.
Km 63:
One of the pre-race favorites, Caja Rural's Rui Costa, has to abandon the race.
.
Km 79:
Dall'Antonia keeps on winning every intermediate mountain sprint and overtakes the mountain jersey from his team mate Sagan. We don't seem to see another breakaway win today as the advance already starts to decrease.
.
Km 86:
Under the high pressure of the peloton, last year's winner Candido Barbosa falls back.
.
Km 143:
As the advance of the break decreases under 2 minutes with 37 km to go, Colnago's Matteo Carrara attacks. He's no danger for the overall though.
.
Km 154:
Strange enough, the attack causes the peloton to slow down a lot. Although Carrara is caught soon, the advance of the original break increases to 3 minutes again.
.
Km 165:
16 km to go and the break is sure to take the win. Benat Intxausti attacks, he knows he can't win in a sprint. Dall'Antonia and Ratto follow.
.
Km 171:
But none of them succeeds. The group enters the last 10 km together.
.
Km 178:
The sprint for the win starts and Dall'Antonia has a good position behind Intxausti and Izagirre...
.
Km 180:
Approaching the last kilometer, Intxausti is still in the lead. Planckaert makes his move.
.
Km 181:
But it's Gorka Izagirre who has the most energy left. Dall'Antonia saves the second spot close in front of his compatriot Ratti.
.
Km 178:
Meanwhile, Dominik Nerz again starts the lead out. Behind him are Sagan and Viviani, Cunego is also close to the front.
.
Km 181:
But Viviani is too tired in the end. Sagan takes a good tenth, he really is in great shape.
1
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
4h34'59
2
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
3
Eddy Ratti
Barbot - Efapel
s.t.
4
Baptiste Planckaert
Landbouwkrediet
s.t.
5
Beñat Intxausti
Movistar Team
s.t.
6
Matteo Carrara
Colnago - CSF Inox
+ 3'48
7
Roberto Ferrari
LA - Antarte
s.t.
8
Aitor Galdos
Caja Rural
s.t.
9
Kurt-Asle Arvesen
Nokia - SunGard
s.t.
10
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
...
29
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
Classifications
Overall
1
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
8h29'55
2
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
+ 10
3
Nairo Quintana
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 1'44
4
Rubén Pérez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 2'41
5
Alessandro Spezialetti
Tavira - Prio
+ 2'58
6
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 3'48
7
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 3'50
8
Eddy Ratti
Barbot - Efapel
+ 3'52
9
Baptiste Planckaert
Landbouwkrediet
+ 4'06
10
Beñat Intxausti
Movistar Team
+ 4'10
...
21
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
Points
1
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
37
2
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
31
3
Eddy Ratti
Barbot - Efapel
26
4
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
25
5
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
24
Mountain
1
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
18
2
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
12
3
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
8
4
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
8
5
Nairo Quintana
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
4
Young Riders
1
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
8h29'55
2
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
+ 10
3
Nairo Quintana
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 1'44
4
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 3'50
5
Baptiste Planckaert
Landbouwkrediet
+ 4'06
Teams
1
Liquigas - Cannondale
25h42'19
2
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 2'15
3
Onda
+ 3'48
Dominik's Comment
There seems to be one simple recipe for success here in Portugal: Breakaways. Second win in a row by an escapee. I really hope that I can take part in the break tomorrow, today Tiziano was in a better position.
Although he missed the win closely, today was again a success for us. We still hold every jersey and the team ranking and I did well again in the sprint preparation. Viviani would have had great chances if he wasn't so tired due to the hills.
Roberto Ferrari might be in LA Antarte, but he's still Italian. =) And hopefuly, when Dominik goes on the break, it will get to the end, otherwise it will be an extremely bad luck, or bad timing.
Today is probably the hardest stage of this tour. A lot of short ups and downs will challenge the riders. Looking at the previous stages, one might expect another breakaway to succeed.
Dominik's Pre-Race Comment
First and most important: We want Juraj to keep the yellow jersey, in fact, he might need a bit more time for the time trial Ricardo Vilela is a bit better against the clock. Especially Damiano Cunego announced to do a lot of work to support Sagan.
Plus, we of course want a man in the break again. That seems very promising here. For that, we basically only have me and Alessandro Vanotti left, so I'll try my best to make the jump this time.
Live Ticker
Km 5:
Caja Rural's new leader Javier Moreno launches the first attack.
.
Km 6:
And as promised, Dominik Nerz tries to cover the attack.
.
Km 13:
Several riders try to reach the leading six riders around Nerz, who are already more than a minute in front.
.
Km 25:
Those six riders are still out in front but it's not certain that they can stay clear.
.
Km 31:
With their advance growing to more than 2'30, we seem to have the break of the day: 10 riders form the group, Dominik is there as well as Moreno or Laurent Didier (Nokia).
.
Km 40:
The riders do not contest for the intermediate sprint, Laurent Didier takes it as he's the one currently leading the group. Their advance is at 4'40.
.
Km 63:
Javier Moreno takes the first mountain sprint. Behind the group, the pack is riding pretty fast, leveling down the advance below 4 minutes.
.
Km 67:
The steep climb splitted the peloton, only 50 riders are left together. All Liquigas riders are in there.
.
Km 84:
Although Dominik does a lot of work, the advance of the escapees is slowly decreasing. It's only at a bit more than 3 minutes.
.
Km 115:
Moreno also takes the second mountain sprint. His attack makes the group split. The peloton decreases as well, only 37 riders are in the group around Sagan and Vilela.
.
Km 126:
At the bottom of the last classified climb, Dominik fell back in the second group. The first escapees have an advance of 1'40 left on the group of Sagan and Cunego.
.
Km 130:
Nerz and his fellows are caught again. Only four riders around Moreno are left in front.
.
Km 132:
Javier Moreno wins the last KoM sprint and overtakes the lead in the classification.
.
Km 145:
Alessandro Vanotti overtakes responsability and makes the pace in the chasing group.
.
Km 155:
As the original escapees are caught, David Commeyne (Landbouwkrediet) attacks.
.
Km 160:
Everything is back together, thanks to Vanotti. 40 riders compete on the last 7 km for the stage win.
.
Km 161:
Or not? Damiano Cunego prepares the attack for his leader Juraj Sagan. Can they take a couple of seconds?
.
Km 164:
Chris Anker Sørensen (Nokia) overtook them both and looks like the stage winner.
.
Km 165:
Was the attack a boomerang? Cunego and Sagan are back and now it's Vilela (Polkadot) who attacks!
.
Km 166:
It doesn't seem like Vilela is breaking free. But Cunego is now on the chase for Sørensen.
.
Km 167:
But Sørensen had enough advance and takes the stage win in front of our Italian.
.
Km 167:
Sagan comes in 1'53 behind Sørensen, right in front of Vilela. He gets a 13 seconds time gap to the Portuguese.
Km 167:
A completely exhausted Dominik Nerz comes in a bit later. He loses 4'20 to Sørensen but showed a courageous performance today.
1
Chris Anker Sørensen
Nokia - SunGard
4h32'41
2
Damiano Cunego
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 18
3
Mikel Nieve
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 41
4
Rubén Plaza
Movistar Team
s.t.
5
Cyril Lemoine
Saur - Sojasun
+ 1'08
6
Beñat Intxausti
Movistar Team
+ 1'16
7
Kurt-Asle Arvesen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 1'24
8
Gustavo César Veloso
Caja Rural
s.t.
9
David Arroyo
Movistar Team
s.t.
10
Diego Milán
Caja Rural
s.t.
...
38
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 4'20
Classifications
Overall
1
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
13h04'29
2
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
+ 23
3
Nairo Quintana
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 2'49
4
Beñat Intxausti
Movistar Team
+ 3'33
5
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 4'01
6
Alessandro Spezialetti
Tavira - Prio
+ 4'03
7
Rubén Pérez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 4'34
8
Eddy Ratti
Barbot - Efapel
+ 4'57
9
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 5'43
10
Chris Anker Sørensen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 5'45
11
Damiano Cunego
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 6'07
...
34
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 10'25
Points
1
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
39
2
Damiano Cunego
Liquigas - Cannondale
33
3
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
31
4
Eddy Ratti
Barbot - Efapel
26
5
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
25
Mountain
1
Javier Moreno
Caja Rural
20
2
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
18
3
Chris Anker Sørensen
Nokia - SunGard
16
4
Laurent Didier
Nokia - SunGard
14
5
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
12
Young Riders
1
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
13h04'29
2
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
+ 23
3
Nairo Quintana
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 2'49
4
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 5'43
5
Omar Fraile
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 9'15
Teams
1
Liquigas - Cannondale
39h24'12
2
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 4'50
3
Movistar Team
+ 7'03
Dominik's Comment
Well, another good stage for the team. Not too well for me though. But let's take one at a time:
What we did do is to keep Juraj in yellow, we even extended his lead a bit. Although we might have been able to do more without the late attack, it was worth a shot. Now it's up to him the day after tomorrow.
Also, we brought a man in the break – me. But today, I had to realize once again that hills are just not my best terrain. I suffered my way through and wasn't able to stop Moreno from overtaking the mountain jersey. But anyway, at least I made my appearance at front.
Tomorrow is on easier terrain so we can rest a bit before the concluding time trial.
Apart from the time trial, this is the only stage categorized as flat. But as it's not completely flat, we might see another breakaway success. Otherwise, this might be the only chance for pure sprinters.
Dominik's Pre-Race Comment
Of course we're again trying to defend Sagan's leader jersey. For the stage win, we'll try to be prepared for both a break and a sprint. Me and Alessandro Vanotti are going to try to make it to the break while we have Viviani and Dall'Antonia for a sprint finish.
Live Ticker
Km 2:
Among the first escapees is surprisingly GC's 11th Damiano Cunego. He surely won't be let away..?
.
Km 13:
Of course not. But I figure that he knew that. Maybe, he just played for time while his team mates moved up to the front.
.
Km 15:
It seems so, as Dominik Nerz launches an attack on one of the steeper ascents.
.
Km 23:
And he's successful: Together with five other riders – most known: Rubens Bertogliati (Barbot) – are 2'40 in front of the pack. Two more riders are in between them.
.
Km 32:
Nerz also wins the first intermediate sprint. He seems very motivated.
.
Km 42:
The two chasers made the jump, eight riders lead with 5'30.
.
Km 83:
At the mountain sprint, the advance already shrinked down to 4 minutes. That doesn't look good for Nerz.
.
Km 120:
The break manages to keep the gap stable at about 3'30...
.
Km 136:
… but with 30 kms to go, the advances decreased under three minutes. GreenEdge and Caja Rural aim for a mass sprint with might and main.
.
Km 145:
On the last bigger hill, Dominik Nerz gives it another try and attacks. 21 kms to go.
.
Km 157:
Within the last kilometers, only Nerz and Bertogliati, who countered his attack, are left in front. GreenEdge is chasing hard.
.
Km 160:
And with 6 kms to go, Dominik's adventure is over.
.
Km 163:
GreenEdge did most of the work but only Caja Rural builds a real sprint train for Aitor Galdos. On the right, Juraj Sagan tries to place Damiano Cunego close to the front.
.
Km 164:
The sprint starts and Diego Milan pulls away. On his wheel are Galdos and Cunego, one of them will win this.
.
Km 165:
Cunego can't sprint past Galdos, no surprise there. Nevertheless a great result for him. The gap they produced is pretty impressive as well, although they didn't get a time gap.
1
Aitor Galdos
Caja Rural
4h05'58
2
Damiano Cunego
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
3
Diego Milán
Caja Rural
s.t.
4
Cyril Lemoine
Saur - Sojasun
s.t.
5
Juan Forero
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
s.t.
6
Roberto Ferrari
LA - Antarte
s.t.
7
Rubén Pérez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
8
Rubén Plaza
Movistar Team
s.t.
9
Davy Commeyne
Landbouwkrediet
s.t.
10
Hubert Dupont
Landbouwkrediet
s.t.
...
52
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
Classifications
Overall
1
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
17h10'27
2
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
+ 23
3
Nairo Quintana
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 2'49
4
Beñat Intxausti
Movistar Team
+ 3'33
5
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 4'01
6
Alessandro Spezialetti
Tavira - Prio
+ 4'03
7
Rubén Pérez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 4'34
8
Eddy Ratti
Barbot - Efapel
+ 4'57
9
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 5'43
10
Chris Anker Sørensen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 5'45
...
34
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 10'19
Points
1
Damiano Cunego
Liquigas - Cannondale
53
2
Aitor Galdos
Caja Rural
40
3
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
39
4
Cyril Lemoine
Saur - Sojasun
36
5
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
31
Mountain
1
Javier Moreno
Caja Rural
20
2
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
18
3
Chris Anker Sørensen
Nokia - SunGard
16
4
Laurent Didier
Nokia - SunGard
14
5
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
12
Young Riders
1
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
17h10'27
2
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
+ 23
3
Nairo Quintana
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 2'49
4
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 5'43
5
Omar Fraile
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 9'15
Teams
1
Liquigas - Cannondale
51h42'06
2
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 4'50
3
Movistar Team
+ 7'03
Dominik's Comment
Second try, second fail: The pack has learned from it's mistakes on stages one and two, unfortunatly. But anyway, I could show myself again, thats fine as well.
On the other hand, I made the peloton chase me so fast that neither Tiziano Dall'Antonia nor Elia Viviani had much energy left for the sprint. So we had to put our shirt on Damiano for the sprint and he did terrific. He chose the right wheel to follow and made the most of it – our third second spot in a row.
Now only tomorrow is left in Portugal. Hopefully, Juraj can end this race on a high note.
The concluding time trial is not too long and rather flat. No really large time gaps are expected, but we will see some changes in the overall for sure.
Dominik's Pre-Race Comment
No big tactics meeting today – it's everyone for himself. Of course we hope that Juraj Sagan can keep his overall lead, Vilela is considered to be a bit better against the clock but Juraj has 23 seconds which might be enough on this course. Personally, I'll just see what I can do. Maybe I'll be able to advance a bit in the overall.
Live Ticker
136th (+1h13'15)
Saur's Gael Pierson is the first rider to start the race.
102nd (+39'49)
Felipe Cardoso (Barbot) sets a first respectable time on home soil, beating every former time by at least 20 seconds.
27'57
.
96th (+36'34)
Jack Bobridge, one of the favorites for a good ranking today, fails to beat Cardoso. The Portuguese' time seems to be really well.
28'04
.
63th (+17'16)
As the first Liquigas rider, Elia Viviani finishes. He's a bad time trialist but his experiences on the course will come in handy for his team mates.
28'17
.
50th (+15'34)
The Dane Mads Christensen (Nokia) sets the next bang, crushing all former times by more than 30 seconds.
27'21
.
34th (+10'19)
Dominik Nerz is on his way. On the first checkpoint, he sets the provisional fourth time.
.
34th (+10'19)
He keeps his speed into the finish, provisional fifth there as well. A good time.
27'52
.
28th (+9'24)
Jonathan Castroviejo (Barbot) disappoints a bit and comes in third so far.
27'40
.
20th (+7'29)
The top favorite for today lives up to the expectations: Australian TT champion Richie Porte flies through the parcours and takes the best time and makes the first serious bid for the stage win.
26'54
.
18th (+7'29)
Dimitri Champion (AG2R) comes surprisingly close to Porte.
27'00
.
13th (+6'46)
Maybe Porte's time wasn't that good? Ruben Plaza lowers it by four seconds.
26'50
.
11th (+5'55)
Damiano Cunego rides a terrific race, almost overtaking Mikel Nieve. Provisional fourth.
27'03
.
9th (+ 5'43)
We're in the Top 10. Gorka Izagirre (Euskaltel) rides not too well. He might lose some places today.
27'46
.
7th (+ 4'34)
His team mate Ruben Perez is much worse. But he has more advance to his chasers and keeps his Top 10.
28'32
.
5th (+4'01)
Tiziano Dall'Antonia rides a decent time trial and finishes within the Top 15. He thus secures his Top 5 overall.
27'46
.
4th (+3'33)
Benat Intxausti (Movistar) is a terrible time trialist. We see that today, he even loses his fourth spot to Dall'Antonia.
28'30
.
3rd (+2'49)
Nairo Quintana can't do much today, his third place is safe. His time is reflects that a bit.
28'09
.
2nd (+23)
But now we're in the fight for the overall. Ricardo Vilela has to make up 23 seconds on Sagan, he sets a good time for his standards. Let's see if it's enough...
28'11
.
1st
Juraj Sagan gives everything to achieve the biggest win of his career. But it just wasn't meant to be! He loses the overall with two small seconds to the young Portuguese!
28'36
1
Rubén Plaza
Movistar Team
26'50
2
Richie Porte
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 4
3
Dimitri Champion
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 11
4
Damiano Cunego
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 14
5
Gustavo César Veloso
Caja Rural
+ 21
6
Cyril Lemoine
Saur - Sojasun
+ 25
7
David Arroyo
Movistar Team
+ 26
8
Mads Christensen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 31
9
Luis Pasamontes
Movistar Team
+ 42
10
Kurt-Asle Arvesen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 48
...
17
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 1'03
...
38
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
+ 1'21
...
89
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 1'46
Classifications
Overall
1
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
17h39'01
2
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 2
3
Nairo Quintana
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 2'23
4
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 3'14
5
Beñat Intxausti
Movistar Team
+ 3'29
6
Alessandro Spezialetti
Tavira - Prio
+ 4'16
7
Damiano Cunego
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 4'25
8
Rubén Pérez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 4'32
9
Eddy Ratti
Barbot - Efapel
+ 4'41
10
Chris Anker Sørensen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 4'55
...
31
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 9'38
Spoiler
11
Rubén Plaza
Movistar Team
+ 5'02
12
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 5'05
13
Richie Porte
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 5'49
14
Cyril Lemoine
Saur - Sojasun
+ 5'54
15
Dimitri Champion
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 5'56
16
Gustavo César Veloso
Caja Rural
+ 6'06
17
David Arroyo
Movistar Team
+ 6'11
18
Mikel Nieve
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
19
Kurt-Asle Arvesen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 6'33
20
Diego Milán
Caja Rural
+ 7'04
21
Alessandro Vanotti
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 7'10
22
Egoitz García
Caja Rural
+ 7'40
23
Rinaldo Nocentini
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 7'54
24
Jonathan Castroviejo
Barbot - Efapel
+ 8'31
25
Javier Moreno
Caja Rural
+ 8'45
26
Andrey Amador
Movistar Team
s.t.
27
Omar Fraile
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 8'48
28
Edgar Pinto
LA - Antarte
+ 8'57
29
Vergílio Dos Santos
LA - Antarte
+ 9'18
30
Davy Commeyne
Landbouwkrediet
+ 9'28
31
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 9'38
32
Ángel Vallejo
Barbot - Efapel
+ 10'02
33
Baptiste Planckaert
Landbouwkrediet
+ 10'14
34
Hugo Sabido
LA - Antarte
+ 10'23
35
Christophe Laurent
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 10'27
36
Mitchell Docker
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 10'37
37
Andrea Noè
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 11'15
38
Marco Frapporti
Colnago - CSF Inox
+ 11'18
39
Rein Taaramäe
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 11'39
40
Federico Canuti
Colnago - CSF Inox
+ 13'11
41
Edwin Parra
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 13'15
42
Luis Pasamontes
Movistar Team
+ 13'22
43
Hubert Dupont
Landbouwkrediet
+ 13'46
44
Vitor Rodrigues
Tavira - Prio
+ 13'49
45
Aitor Galdos
Caja Rural
+ 13'50
46
Matteo Carrara
Colnago - CSF Inox
+ 14'04
47
Ricardo Mestre
Tavira - Prio
s.t.
48
Mads Christensen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 14'21
49
Pieter Weening
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 14'28
50
Víctor Hugo Peña
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 15'11
51
Radoslav Romanik
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 15'20
52
Alejandro Marque
Onda
s.t.
53
Víctor De la Parte
Caja Rural
+ 15'22
54
Laurent Mangel
Saur - Sojasun
+ 15'24
55
Cândido Barbosa
Onda
+ 15'39
56
Laurent Didier
Nokia - SunGard
s.t.
57
Juan Forero
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 15'49
58
Roberto Ferrari
LA - Antarte
+ 15'51
59
Egoi Martínez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 15'58
60
Benjamin Gourgue
Landbouwkrediet
+ 16'37
61
Daniel Teklehaimanot
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 16'41
62
Elia Viviani
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 16'59
63
Alexandre Usov
Onda
+ 17'19
64
Hélder Oliveira
Onda
+ 19'57
65
Sérgio Sousa
Onda
+ 20'53
66
Diego Gallego
Burgos 2016 - Castilla y León
+ 22'08
67
Óscar Álvarez
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 22'22
68
José Alberto Benítez
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 22'23
69
Cesar Grajales
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 23'05
70
José Luis Roldán
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 23'54
71
Miguel Ángel Candil
LA - Antarte
+ 24'34
72
Imanol Erviti
Movistar Team
+ 24'48
73
David Bernabéu
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 24'50
74
Rubens Bertogliati
Barbot - Efapel
+ 24'59
75
André Vital
LA - Antarte
+ 25'01
76
Jarmo Rissanen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 25'03
77
Javier Francisco Aramendia
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 25'05
78
Adam Sznitko
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 25'07
79
Filippo Savini
Colnago - CSF Inox
+ 25'16
80
Amaro Antunes
LA - Antarte
+ 25'23
81
Ben Gastauer
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 27'57
82
Rony Martias
Saur - Sojasun
+ 29'18
83
Omar Lombardi
Colnago - CSF Inox
+ 31'41
84
Simone Stortoni
Colnago - CSF Inox
+ 32'08
85
Jarosław Marycz
Nokia - SunGard
+ 33'00
86
Sébastien Minard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 33'02
87
Glenn Bak
Nokia - SunGard
+ 33'14
88
Wojcieck Halejak
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 33'24
89
Sérgio Ribeiro
Barbot - Efapel
+ 33'44
90
Henrique Casimiro
Tavira - Prio
+ 34'02
91
Daniel Sesma
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 34'39
92
Óscar Vicente Grau
Burgos 2016 - Castilla y León
+ 35'45
93
Jacques Janse Van Rensburg
Burgos 2016 - Castilla y León
+ 35'48
94
Esteban Chaves
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 35'49
95
Jack Bobridge
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 36'05
96
Paolo Locatelli
Colnago - CSF Inox
+ 36'42
97
Mikel Bizkarra
Orbea Continental
+ 36'58
98
Adrián Sáez de Arregi
Orbea Continental
+ 37'18
99
Bart Dockx
Landbouwkrediet
+ 38'17
100
André Cardoso
Tavira - Prio
+ 38'21
101
Filipe Cardoso
Barbot - Efapel
+ 39'12
102
John Martinez
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 39'29
103
Egidijus Juodvalkis
Landbouwkrediet
+ 39'38
104
Manuel Ortega
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 39'39
105
Luke Roberts
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 40'46
106
Claude Wolter
Nokia - SunGard
+ 41'11
107
Joaquín Sobrino
Caja Rural
+ 42'22
108
Ion Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 42'35
109
Jon Pardo
Onda
+ 42'40
110
Eloy Ruiz
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 42'56
111
Diogo Nunes
Tavira - Prio
+ 45'46
112
David Livramento
Tavira - Prio
+ 46'55
113
Dariusz Baranowski
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 47'04
114
José Luis Cano
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 47'06
115
Matias Crespo
Movistar Team
s.t.
116
Mathieu Perget
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 47'35
117
Benjamín Noval
Movistar Team
+ 48'52
118
Andoni Blázquez
Orbea Continental
+ 49'39
119
Luke Durbridge
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 49'55
120
Samuel Caldeira
Tavira - Prio
+ 50'21
121
Romain Matheou
Saur - Sojasun
+ 51'08
122
Bruno Sancho
LA - Antarte
+ 51'33
123
Jon Aberasturi
Orbea Continental
+ 52'23
124
Francisco Manuel Antón
Burgos 2016 - Castilla y León
+ 52'24
125
Pascual Orengo
Burgos 2016 - Castilla y León
+ 52'33
126
Xabier Zabalo
Orbea Continental
+ 55'03
127
Hans Dekkers
Landbouwkrediet
+ 57'27
128
Alberto Morrás
Onda
+ 57'41
129
José Antonio Barrios
Burgos 2016 - Castilla y León
+ 57'44
130
Beñat Urain
Orbea Continental
+ 58'24
131
Alexander Kamp
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 58'59
132
Graeme Brown
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 1h03'08
133
Fabrice Jeandesboz
Saur - Sojasun
+ 1h04'18
134
Yvan Arnaud
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 1h05'39
135
Mateo Langlais
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 1h08'20
136
Gaël Pierson
Saur - Sojasun
+ 1h13'52
Points
1
Damiano Cunego
Liquigas - Cannondale
67
2
Rubén Plaza
Movistar Team
47
3
Cyril Lemoine
Saur - Sojasun
46
4
Aitor Galdos
Caja Rural
40
5
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
39
Mountain
1
Javier Moreno
Caja Rural
20
2
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
18
3
Chris Anker Sørensen
Nokia - SunGard
16
4
Laurent Didier
Nokia - SunGard
14
5
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
12
Young Riders
1
Ricardo Vilela
Onda
17h39'01
2
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 2
3
Nairo Quintana
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 2'23
4
Gorka Izagirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 5'05
5
Jonathan Castroviejo
Barbot - Efapel
+ 8'31
...
7
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 9'38
Teams
1
Liquigas - Cannondale
53h04'50
2
Movistar Team
+ 5'57
3
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 6'12
Dominik's Comment
Looking at the numbers – second, fourth and seventh overall, points and team classification, a stage win and three second places – the Volta went pretty well for us. But you might imagine that the athmosphere in the team bus today was pretty depressed. Juraj was devastated. In a couple of days, he will recognize that a second spot in such a race is a great achievement for him anyway, but at the moment, we just can't cheer him up.
Personally, the Volta ended quite ok. 19th in a time trial is a decent ranking for me. In general, I just lacked of luck here in Portugal. Although I made it into the break two times, none of them succeeded. 31st overall is still a reasonable result.
Now I have only one rest day until we start again for the Giro di Sardegna in Italy. Joining us there will be Roman Kreuziger who rode the Tour of Oman while we were busy here. I'll give you a brief review of his results there soon.
Existing since 2010, the Tour of Oman is a very young race, nevertheless it has already a certain importance and attracts a lot of strong riders. In its first two editions, the race was decided in a time trial and won by Fabian Cancellara and David Millar, respectively. Since this year, the tour also features a tough climb which is now decisive together with the time trial.
The other four stages flat as a pancake and, as in Qatar, characterized by strong winds. So both stage racers and sprinters should get their chances.
Spoiler
Result in 2011
1
David Millar
Team Garmin - Cervelo
2
Sylvain Chavanel
Quick·Step Cycling Team
3
Amael Moinard
BMC Racing Team
4
Christophe Riblon
Ag2r – La Mondiale
5
Kevin De Weert
Quick·Step Cycling Team
Favorites
Roman Kreuziger (Liquigas) , Marzio Bruseghin (Movistar)
The starting field is relatively good but not too strong. Most riders are either good climbers or decent time trialists, but only few are both. Therefore, Roman Kreuziger and Marzio Bruseghin are the top favorites. The Italian might have an advance as he already has a couple of race days in his legs while Kreuziger starts his season here. Also, Movistar provides a very strong team.
Team Liquigas
We aim for the win with Kreuziger although we don't really know what he'll be able to do. With Damiano Caruso, he has only little support for the queen stage. Simone Ponzi, supported by Mauro Finetto, should be able to get some good results in the sprint.
Report – Part One
A three men break leads the stage most of the time but stands no chance against the chasing sprinter teams. A bunch sprint is unevitable.
Allan Davis leads the only existing sprint train for his captain Matthew Goss. Qatar winner Joaquin Rojas sits directly on his wheel and has no problems to overtake him on the last kilometer. Simone Ponzi had a great position behind the Spaniard and although he still isn't in best shape, the good positioning brings him his first podium of this year.
Rojas is in awesome shape and celebrates his fourth stage win on the Arabian Peninsula.
1
Jose Joaquin Rojas
Movistar Team
3h28'33
2
Matthew Goss
GreenEdge Cycling
s.t.
3
Simone Ponzi
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
The early break – without Liquigas participation – is caught early enough and a strange sprint can begin:
More or less by coincidence, Maciej Paterski grabs Allan Davis' wheel and slips between him and Matthew Goss. Probably therefore, Davis just doesn't start to sprint until the last 500m. The profiteer is Anthony Ravard who comes from far behind and overtakes everyone. Goss at least gets third and gains the overall lead. Paterski holds on to a Top 10 while Mauro Finetto shows a good performance finishing sixth despite his weak shape.
A surprising winner on stage 2.
1
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
3h00'35
2
Tom Veelers
Skil – Shimano
s.t.
3
Matthew Goss
GreenEdge Cycling
s.t.
No special events before the sprint. The usual break is caught early enough. After Finetto's good results from yesterday, we decide to try to build our own sprint train with Kreuziger, Paterski, Finetto and Ponzi.
But Kreuziger can't keep up with Allan Davis who leads out Goss and Rojas. Although Finetto does extraordinarily well and makes up a lot of meters, Ponzi can't do more than a fifth place. Rojas overtakes Goss and wins the stage.
No real morning break today, the first group is caught about halfway through the stage and no other riders manage to break free from that points on.
The climb starts with an attack by Leonardo Duque. With 3.5 kms, Roman Kreuziger makes his move and overtakes the Colombian. He gets a gap of 30 seconds and saves a small advance in front of the Saur duo Hivert and Gadret. Duque surprises with a strong fourth spot. A lot of pre race favorites like Marzio Bruseghin or Simon Spilak disappoint and finish more than a minute off Kreuziger, who has now perfect chances to win the overall.
Roman Kreuziger fulfills his role as the top favorite.
1
Roman Kreuziger
Liquigas – Cannondale
3h45'09
2
Jonathan Hivert
Saur – Sojasun
+ 9
3
John Gadret
Saur – Sojasun
s.t.
4
Leonardo Duque
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 19
5
Iván Gutiérrez
Movistar Team
+ 40
First Adriano Malori (Lampre), then Sébastien Joly (FDJ) set strong early times that last long. Stijn Devolder (Skil) is the first to beat them after quite a while, but his time doesn't last either. The first real bid for the stage win is made by Gustav Erik Larsson (Nokia).
In the fight for the overall, Iván Gutiérrez, yesterday's fifth does great taking provisional second place. John Gadret can't compete with that and loses his overall third. Hivert on the other hand rides very well and is able to hold on to his second spot.
Roman Kreuziger rides terrific as well, the overall is safe. The only question is: Can he take his second stage win as well? No he can't. He is three seconds slower than Larsson but probably won't care too much.
The Swedish Champion is one of the world's best time trialists.
1
Gustav Erik Larsson
Nokia – Sungard
29'41
2
Roman Kreuziger
Liquigas – Cannondale
+ 3
3
Iván Gutiérrez
Movistar Team
+ 13
The concluding flat stage is dominated by a ten men break including Maciej Bodnar. They are caught with 20 kms to go, the sprinter teams are really attentive in Oman.
In the sprint, José Joaquin Rojas again made use of GreenEdge's lead out and jumps from Goss' wheel in the very last moment to edge him out on the line. Mauro Finetto followed the two but can't compete with them at the moment. He finishes fourth, a good result.
Rojas is the superior sprinter in the deserts of both Qatar and Oman. Really impressive.
1
José Joaquin Rojas
Movistar Team
3h35'39
2
Matthew Goss
GreenEdge Cycling
s.t.
3
Leonardo Duque
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
Classifications
Overall
1
Roman Kreuziger
Liquigas - Cannondale
17h23'49
2
Jonathan Hivert
Saur - Sojasun
+ 1'00
3
Iván Gutiérrez
Movistar Team
+ 1'12
4
John Gadret
Saur - Sojasun
+ 1'17
5
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 1'27
6
José Joaquín Rojas
Movistar Team
+ 1'28
7
Leonardo Duque
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 1'30
8
Gustav Erik Larsson
Nokia - SunGard
+ 1'51
9
Freddy Montaña
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 2'00
10
Álex Cano Ardila
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 2'12
Spoiler
11
Nicki Sørensen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 2'14
12
Walter Pedraza
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 2'16
13
Xavier Florencio
Lampre - ISD
+ 2'20
14
Marzio Bruseghin
Movistar Team
s.t.
15
Samuel Dumoulin
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 2'26
16
Juan Mauricio Soler
Movistar Team
s.t.
17
Ezequiel Mosquera
Movistar Team
+ 2'47
18
Damiano Caruso
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 3'10
19
Staf Scheirlinckx
Skil - Shimano
+ 3'16
20
Paolo Tiralongo
Pro Team Astana
+ 3'30
21
Julien El Fares
Movistar Team
+ 3'32
22
Matthew Goss
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 3'45
23
Daniele Pietropolli
Lampre - ISD
+ 3'50
24
Simon Geschke
Skil - Shimano
+ 4'09
25
Martin Elmiger
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'10
26
David Boily
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 4'11
27
Sergio Henao
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 4'17
28
Stijn Devolder
Skil - Shimano
+ 4'23
29
Sebastian Langeveld
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 4'26
30
Sergey Firsanov
Itera - Katusha
s.t.
31
Daniel Fleeman
Endura Racing
+ 4'27
32
Jesús Rosendo
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 4'32
33
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'35
34
Francisco José Pacheco
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 4'36
35
Steve Houanard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'37
36
Alessandro Bisolti
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 4'42
37
Johann Tschopp
GreenEdge Cycling
s.t.
38
Simone Ponzi
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 4'44
39
Mauro Finetto
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 4'48
40
Rafal Majka
Nokia - SunGard
+ 4'49
41
Luca Solari
Androni Giocattoli
+ 4'51
42
Francesco Gavazzi
Lampre - ISD
+ 4'53
43
Jarlinson Pantano
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 4'55
44
Antonio Piedra
Andalucía Caja Granada
s.t.
45
Emanuele Vona
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 4'58
46
Jonathan Monsalve
Androni Giocattoli
+ 4'59
47
Gianluca Mirenda
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 5'03
48
Guillaume Bonnafond
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 5'04
49
Raffaele Ferrara
Androni Giocattoli
+ 5'05
50
Francesco Failli
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 5'07
51
Hugo Salazar
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 5'18
52
Maciej Paterski
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 5'28
53
Allan Davis
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 5'31
54
Pablo Lastras
Movistar Team
+ 5'36
55
Jonas Aaen Jørgensen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 5'37
56
Sergey Rudaskov
Itera - Katusha
+ 5'39
57
Stuart O'Grady
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 5'44
58
Jérôme Coppel
Movistar Team
+ 5'51
59
Alessandro De Marchi
Androni Giocattoli
+ 5'52
60
Remmert Wielinga
Itera - Katusha
+ 5'58
61
Haimar Zubeldia
Pro Team Astana
+ 5'59
62
Peter Kennaugh
Endura Racing
s.t.
63
Matthew Hayman
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 6'00
64
Simon Richardson
Endura Racing
s.t.
65
Matteo Tosatto
Nokia - SunGard
+ 6'01
66
Hugo Houle
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 6'03
67
Davide Ricci Bitti
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
68
Juan José Lobato
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 6'04
69
Adrián Palomares
Andalucía Caja Granada
s.t.
70
Antonio Cabello
Andalucía Caja Granada
+ 6'09
71
Sébastien Hinault
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 6'11
72
Alexei Shchebelin
Itera - Katusha
s.t.
73
Matthew Stephens
Endura Racing
+ 6'12
74
Assan Bazayev
Pro Team Astana
+ 6'15
75
Rémy Di Gregorio
Pro Team Astana
+ 6'17
76
Walter Proch
Androni Giocattoli
+ 6'18
77
Denys Kostyuk
Lampre - ISD
+ 6'28
78
Sébastien Joly
Saur - Sojasun
+ 6'31
79
Yevgeniy Nepomnyachshiy
Pro Team Astana
+ 6'38
80
Adriano Malori
Lampre - ISD
+ 6'41
81
Matej Mugerli
Lampre - ISD
+ 6'44
82
Daniele Bennati
Lampre - ISD
+ 6'50
83
Jérémie Galland
Saur - Sojasun
+ 6'53
84
Yuriy Krivtsov
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 6'58
85
Guillaume Levarlet
Saur - Sojasun
+ 7'04
86
Jürgen Roelandts
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 7'05
87
Simon Spilak
Lampre - ISD
+ 7'15
88
Tony Gallopin
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 7'16
89
Takashi Miyazawa
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 7'19
90
Mickaël Buffaz
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 7'21
91
Francisco José Ventoso
Pro Team Astana
+ 7'22
92
Jan Kuyckx
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 7'24
93
Giairo Ermeti
Androni Giocattoli
+ 7'27
94
Ludovic Turpin
Saur - Sojasun
+ 7'28
95
Nico Sijmens
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 7'29
96
Maciej Bodnar
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 7'49
97
Pavel Kochetkov
Itera - Katusha
+ 7'54
98
Alan Marangoni
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 7'59
99
Riccardo Chiarini
Androni Giocattoli
+ 8'07
100
Nacer Bouhanni
Saur - Sojasun
+ 8'13
101
Cameron Wurf
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 8'14
102
Evan Oliphant
Endura Racing
+ 8'22
103
Kasper Klostergaard
Nokia - SunGard
+ 8'29
104
Dariusz Rudnicki
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 8'30
105
Stéphane Poulhiès
Saur - Sojasun
+ 8'47
106
Tom Veelers
Skil - Shimano
+ 9'25
107
Marcel Kittel
Skil - Shimano
+ 9'30
108
Simon Lambert-Lemay
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 9'44
109
Otavio Didier Bulgarelli
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
+ 9'48
110
Andrew Randell
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 9'53
111
Coen Vermeltfoort
Skil - Shimano
+ 10'05
112
Frank Dressler
Team Differdange - Magic-Sportfood.de
s.t.
113
Koen De Kort
Skil - Shimano
+ 10'07
114
Joel Zangerle
Team Differdange - Magic-Sportfood.de
+ 10'09
115
Bert De Backer
Skil - Shimano
+ 10'14
116
Luis Felipe Laverde
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 10'22
117
Guillaume Boivin
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 10'34
118
Nico Schneider
Team Differdange - Magic-Sportfood.de
+ 10'36
119
Tommi Martikainen
Nokia - SunGard
+ 10'42
120
Bruno Langlois
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 11'08
121
Roman Kireyev
Pro Team Astana
+ 12'24
122
Alexander Prishpetniy
Itera - Katusha
+ 12'31
123
Leigh Howard
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 12'47
124
Morten Knudsen
Team Differdange - Magic-Sportfood.de
+ 12'53
125
Sébastien Chavanel
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 12'54
126
Jens Mouris
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 12'56
127
Julien Fouchard
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 13'02
128
Jeremie Desjardins
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 13'05
129
Alexsandr Dyachenko
Pro Team Astana
+ 16'29
130
Tom Thill
Nokia - SunGard
+ 21'36
131
Dalivier Ospina
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 22'26
132
Igor Yerzov
Itera - Katusha
+ 23'18
133
Gil Thimmesch
Team Differdange - Magic-Sportfood.de
+ 23'25
134
Ben Menster
Team Differdange - Magic-Sportfood.de
+ 24'03
135
Igor Frolov
Itera - Katusha
+ 25'19
136
Jack Anderson
Endura Racing
+ 27'28
137
Zachary Bell
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 27'30
138
Antonio Santoro
Androni Giocattoli
+ 31'27
139
Iker Camaño
Endura Racing
+ 31'43
140
Marco Pauly
Team Differdange - Magic-Sportfood.de
+ 37'04
141
Callum Wilkinson
Endura Racing
+ 37'41
Points
1
José Joaquín Rojas
Movistar Team
80
2
Matthew Goss
GreenEdge Cycling
76
3
Roman Kreuziger
Liquigas - Cannondale
51
4
Leonardo Duque
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
48
5
Tom Veelers
Skil - Shimano
48
Mountain
1
Roman Kreuziger
Liquigas - Cannondale
20
2
Jonathan Hivert
Saur - Sojasun
14
3
John Gadret
Saur - Sojasun
12
4
Leonardo Duque
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
10
5
Iván Gutiérrez
Movistar Team
8
Young Riders
1
Damiano Caruso
Liquigas - Cannondale
17h26'59
2
David Boily
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 1'01
3
Sergio Henao
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 1'07
4
Simone Ponzi
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 1'34
5
Rafal Majka
Nokia - SunGard
+ 1'39
Teams
1
Movistar Team
52h17'12
2
Colombia es Pasión - Café de Colombia
+ 38
3
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 2'00
The Winner
The Czech Roman Kreuziger celebrates a perfect comeback in the Liquigas jersey. Already in his first race of the season, he showed his winning potential and will now reach for more on his way to the Tour de France.
Liquigas Resumé
We achieved our overall goal as Roman Kreuziger won the whole thing. And as Gossy and Rojas were the non plus ultra in the sprints, one third, fourth and fifth spot each in the sprints by Finetto and Ponzi are really satisfying.
Although I think it's hard for any of the pre-race favourites to do something in the GC, but I don't know, sometimes things can change dramatically. 
