Fourth in Saturday’s Clasica San Sebastian, Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) has said he was pleased with the result and is on the right track to be ready for the Vuelta a Espana.
Rodriguez was in the front group of favourites when eventual race winner Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma-Lotto) put in a searing attack. Frank Schleck (Leopard-Trek) tried to counter with Rodriguez in tow, but there would be no catching the unstoppable Belgian. After Carlos Barredo (Rabobank) separated from the group to take second, Rodriguez came in just behind Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing) in the sprint for third.
“I did my best, but right now, Gilbert seems to be unbeatable,” Rodriguez remarked after the race. “Even though we all knew he was going to attack, no one was able to counter.”
In June, ‘Purito’ was coming off his first Grand Tour of the season, the Giro d’Italia, when he took part in the Criterium du Dauphine. Amidst the group of favorites who were still honing form for the Tour de France, Rodriguez used his top condition to win the uphill finishes on stages 6 and 7. In the Clasica, Rodriguez found himself on the other end of the spectrum.
In the final 10 kilometers of the race, with the lead group containing many stars of this year’s Tour, Rodriguez found the pace difficult to cope with. “During the last few kilometers, I admit I was quite tired,” he said. “It wasn’t easy to keep the pace of the riders who took part in the Tour de France.”
Because of this, Rodriguez was not at all ashamed of his fourth place in the Basque classic. And though Van Avermaet didn’t take part in the Tour either, the in-form Belgian sprinter won last week’s Tour de Wallonie.
“I think the fourth place is a brilliant result,” proclaimed Rodriguez at the finish line. “It proves we’re on the right track and my shape is getting better and better with the Vuelta coming up.”
In last year’s edition of the Spanish Grand Tour, Rodriguez was in overall contention until a disastrous stage seventeen time trial made the overall win impossible and even bumped him off the final podium. He finished 105th on that stage, over six minutes behind winner Peter Velits of HTC Highroad. Though he was one of the best climbers in the race, the time trial was, and continues to be, a thorn in his side.
With the Vuelta still a few weeks away, Rodriguez has more opportunities to find a level of conditioning that he could use to bury last year’s heartbreak. He competed in today’s Circuito de Getxo, the typical follow-up to the Clasica San Sebastian. Though Rodriguez believed the race was more suited to the characteristics of his team-mate and countryman Daniel Moreno, he stated that he was still looking for a positive result for himself.
Juan Jose Lobato (Andalucia-Caja Granada) came out the victor. Rodriguez was third, one second back.