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Tondo, Sastre solid in first mountain test

August 30, 2010 - Filed under: TestTeam

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Xavier Tondo (ESP) led Cervélo TestTeam with 12th place in a solid performance in the first mountain test of the 2010 Vuelta a España. Tondo crossed the line 19 seconds behind winner and new leader Philippe Gilbert (BEL) in a sharp climb at the end of the 157.3 km third stage from Marbella to Málaga that also climbed the first-category Puerto de León with 30 km to go. Tondo climbed into eighth overall at 35 seconds behind Gilbert.

“I felt really good. I started too far behind in the final climb. I passed a lot of riders and I am happy about my form,” Tondo said after the stage. “I haven’t raced in awhile so I need a few days to get my legs going again. I am satisfied with today’s performance and it’s a good signal for the coming days in the Vuelta.”
Cervélo captain Carlos Sastre (ESP) also rode well to stay with the favorites over the Cat. 1 León and came across the line 31st at 30 seconds behind Gilbert. The final steep rise to a castle above Málaga created some splits in the main bunch, but nothing that should prove critical in the coming days.

“It’s never easy. It was hot again today but I was able to stay at the front of the race. We have to take it day by day, because I can see there are others who are fresher than me. The ones who haven’t raced as many days as me,” Sastre said. “It’s important to not lose time in the first climb, so we got through the day in good shape.”

Cervélo rode well throughout the hilly stage, with riders such as Xavier Florencio (ESP), Iñigo Cuesta (ESP) and Oscar Pujol (ESP) doing a good job pacing Sastre and Tondo over the day’s major difficulties. The other riders, such as sprinters Theo Bos (NED) and Thor Hushovd (NOR), only had to find a group and ride in safely within the time limit.

“The team did a good job today. Oscar, Iñigo and Florencio did nice work on the climb and the others were helping out to bring water bottles throughout the stage, because in this stage we have to drink, drink and drink some more,” said Cervélo sport director Philippe Mauduit. “The goal was to stay with the big guns today and did that. There were some splits in the final rise to the finish line, but those will not be significant later in the race.”

There’s extra work for the Cervélo support staff to keep the riders hydrated during the extreme heat so far through this Vuelta. Temperatures were once again well into the high 30s (C).

“We are going through 200 water bottles a day. That’s more than double than what we normally use during a road stage. And we drink them all,” Maudiut said. “It’s still very hot. And there is no breeze, so it’s muggy.”

The 65th Vuelta continues Tuesday with the 183.8 km fourth stage from Málaga to Valdepeñas de Jaén. While there are no major climbs, it’s hilly for most of the day and ends with another short but steep climb.

Vuelta a España Stage 3 Results: Marbella – Malaga 157.3 km

1^st	Philippe Gilbert (BEL)	4:06:12	38.33 km/h (23.82 mph)
2^nd	Joaquin Rodriguez (ESP)	+0.03
3^rd	Igor Anton (ESP)	+0.13
4^th	Vincenzo Nibali (ITA)	+0.15
5^th	Grega Bole (SLO)	s.t.

12^nd	Xavier Tondo (ESP)	+0.19
23^rd	Xavier Florencio (ESP)	+0.25
31^st	Carlos Sastre (ESP)	+0.30
37^th	Íñigo Cuesta (ESP)	+0.30
52^nd	Oscar Pujol (ESP)	+0.54
123^rd	Stefan Denifl (AUT)	+19.05
127^th	Philip Deignan (IRL)	s.t.
155^th	Theo Bos (NED)	+25.03
186^th	Thor Hushovd (NOR)	+25.32

General Classification after Stage 3:

1^st	Philippe Gilbert (BEL)	8:55:56	38.51 km/h (23.93 mph)
2^nd	Joaquin Rodriguez (ESP)	+0.14
3^rd	Kanstantin Sivtsov (BLR)	+0.22

8^th	Xavier Tondo (ESP)	+0.35
10^th	Xavier Florencio (ESP)	+0.41
14^th	Carlos Sastre (ESP)	+0.46
15^th	Íñigo Cuesta (ESP)	s.t.
64^th	Oscar Pujol (ESP)	+2.22
118^th	Stefan Denifl (AUT)	+19.35
132^nd	Philip Deignan (IRL)	+21.01
156^th	Theo Bos (NED)	+25.44
161^st	Thor Hushovd (NOR)	+25.48

4 responses for this Entry

Globalhab says:

September 01, 2010

Philip is doing fine, he's learning. Carlos and Tondo spread your wings and fly. Go boys, go!!!

marwin says:

August 31, 2010

i hope Philip can do much better than last year's Vuelta

jasonpaul says:

August 31, 2010

I hope all the boys will find rides for 2011 as it was a very good team.

Globalhab says:

August 31, 2010

Good job Tondo. Keep up the good work Team Cervelo. Thor, I'm glad to hear that you will be with Garmin next year. My whole family and friends will be rooting for you next year at Roubaix. Hopefully, Haussler and a few of the other boys will join you. Now me and my crew will have to go out and buy Garmin-Cervelo kits, Garmin Edge 500's and S3's. I'll be working lots of overtime to support my favorite team.

Thanks.