Pozzovivo Take Victory In Volta Catalunya Third Stage

25 March 2015 05:10

Domenico Pozzovivo of AG2R has won the third stage of the Volta Catalunya.

Stage three which had Maciej Paterski of CCC Sprandl still in the leader's jersey, started and finished in Girona and comprised of a stage that was 156.5kms long.

Mas and Jarrier were the first attack and were joined by Cattaneo, Danielson, Duque and Molard to form a group which was 3.11 clear after fifty kilometres.

Twenty six kilometres later and that lead was now 3.36 before they started on the category one Alt dels Angels which was six kilometres long with a 5.5% average gradient and ramps of 8% maximum.

That climb thinned out the lead group with Tom Danielson, RudyMolard and Duque left up front with 57kms left but thirteen kilometres later and they were caught by the peloton led by Tinkoff Saxo.

There was two crashes as the pace on the descent went up and this forced a split in the peloton with Team Sky's Chris Froome making it into the front group on a day where temperatures were around the twelve degrees mark and Lotto Soudal leading the second group which contained Valverde who had crashed.

On to the second ascent of the Alt dels Angels and Chris Froome was dropped as Alberto Contador, Richie Porte, Fabio Aru, Pozzovivo, Rigoberto Uran and Diego Rosa got away with Dan Martin of Cannondale-Garmin trying to join them for the last sixteen kilometres.

A kilometre later and Contador attacked followed by Porte but it was Aru, who led the escapers which now comprised of Contador, Porte, Pozzovivo and Uran over the top and onto the start of the ten kilometres of descent before the three kilometre run in, into Girona.

Andrew Talansky made his way back into the front group and with nine kilometres left, Dan Martin got into this elite group who had a 34 second lead with six kilometres left.

Porte led as they started on the flat roads into the town of Girona before Dan Martin took a turn on the front.

Domenico Pozzovivo of AG2R attacked down the left and got clear. He was well away under the flam rouge and continued to take the win in 3.52.36 ahead of Uran, Martin, Contador, Aru, Porte and Talansky.

The peloton came home 22 seconds later and Pierre Rolland of Europcar now leads the race by two minutes and fourteen seconds from Pozzovivo with Dan Martin in fourth place going into stage four from Tona to La Molina.

Source: DSG