Peter Sagan's Vuelta a España debut got even better as the Liquigas-Cannondale rider made it three stage wins in this year's edition by beating Italian sprinters Alessandro Petacchi and Daniele Bennati in the final stage through Madrid this afternoon.
The 21-year-old Slovakian sprung from nowhere in the finale and cheekily swept under the drag race between Petacchi and Bennati to take another stage win in his first grand tour and indicate that he'll be a man to watch at the UCI Road World Championships later this month in Copenhagen, Denmark.
"It's been a great day. I was riding at the front and I took the wheel of Bennati but I got boxed in a bit, so I had to stop my effort and had to re-start from behind. It was hard, but I was still fresh because my team protected me from the wind during the whole stage.
"I was only focused on winning today. It was a technical course, exactly what I like and I was feeling very well," Sagan said.
While he took three stage victories, Sagan said he was frustrated at the botched sprint on stage 16 when a wrong turn at a roundabout ruined his chance to gain points toward the green jersey. He ended up fourth in that classification, just 22 points off Bauke Mollema's winning margin.
"I'm satisfied anyway. This experience of three weeks will help me for the future," Sagan said, downplaying his hopes for winning the world championship in Copenhagen at the end of the month.
"I prefer not to think of the coming world championship. It's difficult to plan. Luck is needed. Team work is an important factor and we'll have a team of three Slovakians. I believe the Velits brothers will be on my side. I'm not bothered about the future. I'm happy with how I go. At the beginning of this season, I didn't think that I could win all these races."
'The Bison' charges into Madrid
The man upon which all eyes focused as the peloton swept into Madrid was Juan José Cobo however, the unexpected leader and champion elect of the Vuelta a España enjoying the limelight with a little fanfare and plenty of satisfaction.
That's because it's been a long and arduous journey for Cobo, the man who was considered one of Spain's best prospects for stage race victory just three years ago when he finished second to Leonardo Piepoli on the Hautacam stage of the Tour de France while riding for the now-defunct Saunier Duval squad (he was later awarded the stage when Piepoli tested positive for CERA).
Since then he's been embroiled in controversy surrounding that team, fallen into obscurity and even considered retirement several months ago; on Sunday afternoon that was the last thing on his mind.
"I've passed through some bad moments the past few months, but now I see things differently. You realise that hard work and sacrifice are worth it – this win makes up for the suffering that I've gone through on the bike," Cobo said, admitting that he's suffered from depression for a year and a half.
He came into the race with no pressure, there presumably to help Carlos Sastre and Denis Menchov, and he admitted that he wasn't doing well in the first week of the race. "I've suffered a lot up the Sierra Nevada. I didn't have the legs. I didn't have the race rhythm and I was lucky the head wind neutralized the race uphill."
"On that day, I was far from imagining that I'd be the eventual winner of the Vuelta. After that, it's been with no worries."
After terrific performances in stage 14 and 15 to La Farrapona. Lagos de Somiedo and Anglirú, respectively, Cobo defended the red jersey with gusto until the final day, which took riders into the heart of Madrid. He celebrated with that leader's jersey, where 12 months earlier Vincenzo Nibali had stood, the latest champion of the Vuelta a España.
"I knew that I was in a good shape since the Tour of Burgos at the beginning of August and I've had two weeks after that to improve my condition," Cobo said. "But I came to the Vuelta to help Carlos Sastre and Denis Menchov and three weeks later, I'm here to talk about winning the Tour of Spain, it's unbelievable!
Following his win on the Anglirú, Cobo told reporters "The objective was to take time on Wiggins and things turned out better than expected. We will defend to the death, but when you're in the lead, things are easier."
And so it was, his Geox-TMC teammates often riding at the front of the race to shut down any potential threats to Cobo's lead and the 30-year-old himself did everything he could – successfully – to prevent Team Sky's Chris Froome usurping his advantage on the stage to Peña Cabarga.
By race's end, his margin of victory was just 13 seconds over Chris Froome, with the Brit's Team Sky stablemate Bradley Wiggins in third, 1:39 behind Cobo. Bauke Mollema recorded his best grand tour result with fourth and Cobo's teammate Denis Menchov took fifth.
Double podium presence for Sky
Despite several attempts to gain back his missing 13 seconds in the past few days, Froome and his teammate Wiggins remained in second and third, respectively, giving Great Britain and Team Sky an excellent Grand Tour performance.
Wiggins came in as the team's top contender, but it was Froome who was able to challenge Cobo. Ultimately he fell shy, but Froome captured the hearts of two nations - Kenya, where he grew up, and Great Britain, where he holds his racing license.
"Three weeks ago, I couldn't envisage such a result and I believe it's the beginning of great stuff," Froome said. "For the first time I got the opportunity to ride a Grand Tour in the best conditions and I took my chance.
Wiggins, who crashed out of the Tour de France and eyed the Vuelta as his chance for redemption, couldn't hide his disappointment.
"The Vuelta isn't the Tour, you have to win the Vuelta," Wiggins said. "I put pressure on myself during three weeks. I saw myself as the winner. I truly believed that I was going to win, that's why I'm not satisfied.
"I'm speaking negatively but there's some positive as well. Nine weeks ago, I broke my collarbone and I would have laughed if anyone told me that I was going to finish third of the Vuelta after that. I've also learned more on how to ride a Grand Tour. At the end of 2010, some people thought that I had come fourth at the 2009 Tour de France by coincidence, now I've made those people understand that it was not the case."
Making their way to Madrid
At only 94km, the final stage of this year's Vuelta was a procession, to say the least, and after a tough three weeks the Spanish capital was a sight for sore eyes within the peloton.
Having made the ceremonial entrance into the city it was time to get on with some racing, and subsequently various groups tried their luck getting away from the bunch until a selection of just three was made with about 58km remaining.
The trio consisted of Joan Horrach (Katusha), Damiano Caruso (Liquigas-Cannondale) and Jose Alberto Benitez (Andalucia Caja Granada), although a solid group of pursuers had assembled behind, with a thundering peloton – led by the vigilant men of Geox-TMC – keeping a close eye on the leaders.
Facing the final 50km of this year's race, the break had itself 32 seconds over the peloton and it looked unlikely that the plucky trio was ever going to get much more than that. Ten clicks later and that proved to be the case as the gap sat at 51 seconds, the main field keeping the escapees on a short leash.
With 26km left in the 63rd Vuelta a España, the break led by 50 seconds, a sprint finish never in doubt as the likes of Lampre-ISD, Leopard Trek and Saxo Bank-Sungard ensured that the gap wouldn't stretch too far and they could set up their fast men for a dash to the line.
And with just 11km remaining it was Horrach who held out the last piece of resistance, having left Caruso and Benitez behind the local lad was content to carry on until the peloton deemed his time out front over and set up the final sprint to the line.
That time would come some nine kilometres from home, the pace lifting dramatically thanks to the work of Lampre-ISD and Leopard Trek, the squads of Italian sprinters Alessandro Petacchi and Daniele Bennati toiling to try and take one last win from the Vuelta.
Aiding in their cause was Saxo Bank-Sungard, with Juan José Haedo waiting in the wings for another crack at glory; it wasn't much match for Stuart O'Grady and Leopard Trek's effort, which was gargantuan in the final three kilometres.
As the sprint opened Sagan still hadn't shown his figure and as Petacchi and Bennati went to the left, the Slovakian sprung into the middle of the road, accelerating impressively to grab another win, much to the disappointment of the experienced Italian duo.
Little noticed in the mix just behind was Mollema, who was helped to ninth on the stage by his Rabobank teammates and therefore took the green points jersey from Joaquim Rodriguez of Katusha.
David Moncoutie (Cofidis) strolled in two minutes after the stage winner, his polka dot climber's jersey wrapped up the day before.
With now three Grand Tour champions in its midst, the Geox-TMC squad earned the title of best team, with race winner Cobo also netting the win in the combination classification. The performance of the Spanish underdogs will go a long way toward helping the team climb up the UCI's overall rankings for the 2012 WorldTour selection.
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