Race Report
via press release
Michael Albasini gave GreenEDGE its second WorldTour overall victory at the Volta a Catalunya. The double stage winner took the leader’s jersey with his win on the opening stage and he never let it go.

“I need to thank the team for the work that they’ve done throughout the week,” said Albasini. “This is an important win for me personally and for the team. It would have been impossible without them.”

“We’re extremely excited to give these victories to our supporters,” added Sports Director Neil Stephens. “We always do our very best, but the results don’t always show that. When you work really hard and come out with the win, it’s an outstanding feeling.”

The final stage was a short, nervous day between Badalona and Barcelona that included three category three climbs and a category one climb. The early break of nine riders never gained more than two minutes on the field, and the last rider from the break was reabsorbed around 30 kilometers from the finish on the slopes of the penultimate climb.

“There was really no moment today when we were under terrible pressure,” said Neil Stephens. “Those moments came earlier in the week. Today, we observed the different objectives of the other teams. When Garmin made their interests known, we let them ride on the front and took a secondary role. We knew all we needed to do was get Michael to the final climb. He started the day with a 1:30 lead. Even if he had gotten into a bit of a trouble on the last climb, which he never did, it would have been unlikely for him to lose that much time.”

Albasini not only stayed with the lead group on the final climb, he also managed to stay with the leaders on the technical descent. Julien Simon (Saur-Sojasun) took his second stage win ahead of Francesco Gavazzi (Astana) and Damiano Cunego (Lampre-ISD). Albasini finished on the same time as the stage winner to retain both the leader’s jersey and his 1:30 advantage over Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi). Jurgen Van den Broeck (Lotto-Belisol) rounded out the overall podium two seconds further down.

“I had Daryl [Impey] with me on the final climb,” explained Albasini. “He has been by my side throughout the entire week. Each of my teammates did everything we asked them to do. They rode an incredible race, and I’m happy to pay them back by finishing off the job with the win.”

“An outsider might think the results that we’ve achieved up to this point are out of proportion for what to expect from a new team,” noted Stephens. “We had our first get together in September. The boys began working closely with one another in December. The staff has been working on this team for well over a year. There will be points throughout the year that we might not get as many results. We hope our fans will be patient and remember that we are team that always gives our very best.”

Race Results

Volta Ciclista a Catalunya (2012) - Stage 7

Badalona to Barcelona (120km)
25 Mar 2012
Stage 7  |  Stage 6  |  Stage 5  |  Stage 4  |  Stage 3  |  Stage 2  |  Stage 1


Race
Position Name Nationality Team Time
1 SIMON, Julien FRA SAUR - SOJASUN 2:47:02
2 GAVAZZI, Francesco ITA ASTANA 0
3 CUNEGO, Damiano ITA LAMPRE - ISD
4 URAN, Rigobero COL SKY PROCYCLING
5 KISERLOVSKI, Robert CRO ASTANA
6 VAN DEN BROECK, Jurgen BEL LOTTO BELISOL
7 KRUIJSWIJK, Steven NED RABOBANK
8 BARDET, Romain FRA AG2R LA MONDIALE
9 PATERSKI, Maciej POL LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE
10 MENCHOV, Denis RUS KATUSHA
11 CARRARA, Matteo ITA VACANSOLEIL-DCM
12 MARTIN, Daniel IRL GARMIN-BARRACUDA
13 CATALDO, Dario ITA OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP
14 SZMYD, Sylvester POL LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE
15 IMPEY, Daryl RSA ORICA-GREENEDGE
16 SANCHEZ GONZALEZ, Samuel ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI
17 KOHLER, Martin SUI BMC RACING
18 PARDILLA BELLON, Sergio ESP MOVISTAR
19 GARCIA, Marcos ESP CAJA RURAL
20 FEILLU, Brice FRA SAUR - SOJASUN
21 MINGUEZ AYALA, Miguel ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI
22 LOSADA ALGUACIL, Alberto ESP KATUSHA
23 ARROYO DURAN, David ESP MOVISTAR
24 QUINTANA ROJAS, Nairo Alexander COL MOVISTAR
25 STETINA, Peter USA GARMIN-BARRACUDA
26 DE WEERT, Kevin BEL OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP
27 GOLAS, Michal POL OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP
28 DOI, Yukihiro JPN PROJECT 1T4I
29 JEANDESBOZ, Fabrice FRA SAUR - SOJASUN
30 DANIELSON, Thomas USA GARMIN-BARRACUDA
31 BRAJKOVIC, Janez SLO ASTANA
32 ALBASINI, Michael SUI ORICA-GREENEDGE
33 ZAUGG, Oliver SUI RADIOSHACK-NISSAN
34 PALOMARES VILLAPLANA, Adrian ESP ANDALUCIA
35 TROFIMOV, Yury RUS KATUSHA
36 KARPETS, Vladimir RUS MOVISTAR
37 TORIBIO ALCOLEA, Jose Vicente ESP ANDALUCIA
38 PIRES, Bruno POR SAXO BANK
39 SILIN, Egor RUS ASTANA
40 ZANDIO ECHAIDE, Xabier ESP SKY PROCYCLING
41 VEIKKANEN, Jussi FIN FDJ-BIG MAT 14
42 MEIER, Christian CAN ORICA-GREENEDGE
43 FRANK, Mathias SUI BMC RACING
44 BAGOT, Yohan FRA COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE
45 GASTAUER, Ben LUX AG2R LA MONDIALE
46 MATE MARDONES, Luis Angel ESP COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE 20
47 SIMON CASULLERAS, Jordi ESP ANDALUCIA
48 CHEREL, Mikael FRA AG2R LA MONDIALE
49 PIEDRA PEREZ, Antonio ESP CAJA RURAL
50 PINEAU, Cédric FRA FDJ-BIG MAT
51 DENIFL, Stefan AUT VACANSOLEIL-DCM
52 MORI, Manuele ITA LAMPRE - ISD
53 GESINK, Robert NED RABOBANK
54 APPOLLONIO, Davide ITA SKY PROCYCLING
55 SÖRENSEN, Chris Anker DEN SAXO BANK
56 SABATINI, Fabio ITA LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE
57 MORABITO, Steve SUI BMC RACING
58 PAUWELS, Serge BEL OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP
59 VELASCO MURILLO, Ivan ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI 25
60 SANTAMBROGIO, Mauro ITA BMC RACING 30
61 FRÖHLINGER, Johannes GER PROJECT 1T4I 38
62 MOUREY, Francis FRA FDJ-BIG MAT 40
63 IGNATENKO, Petr RUS KATUSHA 51
64 DIDIER, Laurent LUX RADIOSHACK-NISSAN 54
65 DI GREGORIO, Rémy FRA COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE 56
66 ROHREGGER, Thomas AUT RADIOSHACK-NISSAN
67 DE GREEF, Francis BEL LOTTO BELISOL +1:10
68 MONCOUTIE, David FRA COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE +1:41
69 MARZANO, Marco ITA LAMPRE - ISD +1:56
70 MEDEREL, Maxime FRA SAUR - SOJASUN
71 SANTAROMITA, Ivan ITA BMC RACING +2:15
72 TEN DAM, Laurens NED RABOBANK +2:23
73 VANDEWALLE, Kristof BEL OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP
74 VANDEVELDE, Christian USA GARMIN-BARRACUDA +2:28
75 KOSTYUK, Denys UKR LAMPRE - ISD
76 LEIPHEIMER, Levi USA OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP
77 DYACHENKO, Alexsandr KAZ ASTANA
78 BONO, Matteo ITA LAMPRE - ISD +2:41
79 BRUSEGHIN, Marzio ITA MOVISTAR
80 VANOTTI, Alessandro ITA LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE +3:28
81 MARCZYNSKI, Tomasz POL VACANSOLEIL-DCM
82 MARINO, Jean Marc FRA SAUR - SOJASUN +5:19
83 BUSCHE, Matthew USA RADIOSHACK-NISSAN
84 DAVIS, Allan AUS ORICA-GREENEDGE +6:24
85 CARDOSO S., Andre Fernando Martins POR CAJA RURAL
86 SANCHEZ GIL, Luis Leon ESP RABOBANK +6:44
87 HUGUET, Yann FRA PROJECT 1T4I
88 SAMOILAU, Branislau BLR MOVISTAR +7:36
89 SMUKULIS, Gatis LAT KATUSHA
90 TSCHOPP, Johann SUI BMC RACING
91 CARRASCO GARCIA, Sergio ESP ANDALUCIA
92 BERTAGNOLLI, Leonardo ITA LAMPRE - ISD
93 CESAR VELOSO, Gustavo ESP ANDALUCIA +8:34
94 ROSENDO PRADO, Jesus ESP ANDALUCIA
95 CLEMENT, Stef NED RABOBANK
96 ZINGLE, Romain BEL COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE
97 LONGO BORGHINI, Paolo ITA LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE
98 ROBERTS, Luke AUS SAXO BANK
99 SANCHEZ PIMIENTA, Julian ESP CAJA RURAL
100 KASHECHKIN, Andrey KAZ ASTANA
101 BANDIERA, Marco ITA OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP
102 CANO, Jose Luis ESP ANDALUCIA
103 DE LA CRUZ MELGAREJO, David ESP CAJA RURAL
104 BEPPU, Fumiyuki JPN ORICA-GREENEDGE
105 AZANZA SOTO, Jorge ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI
106 EDET, Nicolas FRA COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE
107 HESJEDAL, Ryder CAN GARMIN-BARRACUDA +9:08
108 HOWES, Alex USA GARMIN-BARRACUDA +12:29
109 LANCASTER, Brett AUS ORICA-GREENEDGE
110 VANENDERT, Dennis BEL LOTTO BELISOL +12:41
111 KEIZER, Martijn NED VACANSOLEIL-DCM
112 RAMIREZ ABEJA, Javier ESP ANDALUCIA
113 CABEDO, Victor ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI
114 SPRICK, Matthieu FRA PROJECT 1T4I
115 NOVAL GONZALEZ, Benjamin ESP SAXO BANK
116 CASAR, Sandy FRA FDJ-BIG MAT
117 GALDOS ALONSO, Aitor ESP CAJA RURAL
118 DE LA FUENTE RASILLA, David ESP CAJA RURAL
119 HAEDO, Juan José ARG SAXO BANK
120 POSSONI, Morris ITA LAMPRE - ISD
121 BELKOV, Maxim RUS KATUSHA
122 HUPOND, Thierry FRA PROJECT 1T4I
123 RENEV, Sergey KAZ ASTANA

General Classification After Stage 7
Position Name Nationality Team Time
1 ALBASINI, Michael SUI ORICA-GREENEDGE 24:15:45
2 SANCHEZ GONZALEZ, Samuel ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI +1:30
3 VAN DEN BROECK, Jurgen BEL LOTTO BELISOL +1:32
4 MARTIN, Daniel IRL GARMIN-BARRACUDA
5 URAN, Rigobero COL SKY PROCYCLING
6 CUNEGO, Damiano ITA LAMPRE - ISD
7 KISERLOVSKI, Robert CRO ASTANA
8 CARRARA, Matteo ITA VACANSOLEIL-DCM
9 CATALDO, Dario ITA OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP
10 PARDILLA BELLON, Sergio ESP MOVISTAR
11 MENCHOV, Denis RUS KATUSHA
12 DANIELSON, Thomas USA GARMIN-BARRACUDA
13 SZMYD, Sylvester POL LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE
14 KRUIJSWIJK, Steven NED RABOBANK
15 STETINA, Peter USA GARMIN-BARRACUDA
16 LOSADA ALGUACIL, Alberto ESP KATUSHA +2:16
17 PALOMARES VILLAPLANA, Adrian ESP ANDALUCIA +2:23
18 FEILLU, Brice FRA SAUR - SOJASUN
19 GESINK, Robert NED RABOBANK +2:36
20 TROFIMOV, Yury RUS KATUSHA +3:07
21 SÖRENSEN, Chris Anker DEN SAXO BANK +3:41
22 FRANK, Mathias SUI BMC RACING +3:55
23 LEIPHEIMER, Levi USA OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP +4:24
24 GARCIA, Marcos ESP CAJA RURAL +4:25
25 JEANDESBOZ, Fabrice FRA SAUR - SOJASUN +4:29
26 QUINTANA ROJAS, Nairo Alexander COL MOVISTAR +5:32
27 MORABITO, Steve SUI BMC RACING +7:57
28 MINGUEZ AYALA, Miguel ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI +8:06
29 DI GREGORIO, Rémy FRA COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE +8:11
30 SIMON, Julien FRA SAUR - SOJASUN +8:23
31 ARROYO DURAN, David ESP MOVISTAR +8:40
32 PIRES, Bruno POR SAXO BANK +8:41
33 IMPEY, Daryl RSA ORICA-GREENEDGE +9:18
34 ZAUGG, Oliver SUI RADIOSHACK-NISSAN +10:16
35 IGNATENKO, Petr RUS KATUSHA +10:23
36 ROHREGGER, Thomas AUT RADIOSHACK-NISSAN +10:28
37 TORIBIO ALCOLEA, Jose Vicente ESP ANDALUCIA +10:36
38 DOI, Yukihiro JPN PROJECT 1T4I
39 MEIER, Christian CAN ORICA-GREENEDGE +10:50
40 BARDET, Romain FRA AG2R LA MONDIALE +10:51
41 PAUWELS, Serge BEL OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP +10:56
42 MATE MARDONES, Luis Angel ESP COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE
43 DYACHENKO, Alexsandr KAZ ASTANA +11:09
44 BRAJKOVIC, Janez SLO ASTANA +12:47
45 VELASCO MURILLO, Ivan ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI +13:26
46 EDET, Nicolas FRA COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE +14:07
47 DENIFL, Stefan AUT VACANSOLEIL-DCM +14:34
48 DE GREEF, Francis BEL LOTTO BELISOL +14:39
49 SANCHEZ GIL, Luis Leon ESP RABOBANK +14:50
50 BUSCHE, Matthew USA RADIOSHACK-NISSAN +15:18
51 ZANDIO ECHAIDE, Xabier ESP SKY PROCYCLING +15:29
52 FRÖHLINGER, Johannes GER PROJECT 1T4I +15:56
53 MEDEREL, Maxime FRA SAUR - SOJASUN +16:26
54 CHEREL, Mikael FRA AG2R LA MONDIALE +16:34
55 SANTAMBROGIO, Mauro ITA BMC RACING +17:18
56 BAGOT, Yohan FRA COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE +17:19
57 SILIN, Egor RUS ASTANA +17:29
58 PATERSKI, Maciej POL LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE +18:03
59 MARZANO, Marco ITA LAMPRE - ISD +18:45
60 PINEAU, Cédric FRA FDJ-BIG MAT +18:58
61 GASTAUER, Ben LUX AG2R LA MONDIALE +19:15
62 SANTAROMITA, Ivan ITA BMC RACING +19:20
63 DE LA CRUZ MELGAREJO, David ESP CAJA RURAL +19:31
64 KARPETS, Vladimir RUS MOVISTAR +21:39
65 VEIKKANEN, Jussi FIN FDJ-BIG MAT +22:22
66 GOLAS, Michal POL OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP +23:05
67 MONCOUTIE, David FRA COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE +24:23
68 MARCZYNSKI, Tomasz POL VACANSOLEIL-DCM +25:11
69 TSCHOPP, Johann SUI BMC RACING +26:08
70 VANDEVELDE, Christian USA GARMIN-BARRACUDA +27:27
71 DE WEERT, Kevin BEL OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP +27:44
72 SAMOILAU, Branislau BLR MOVISTAR +27:51
73 SMUKULIS, Gatis LAT KATUSHA +28:16
74 PIEDRA PEREZ, Antonio ESP CAJA RURAL +28:21
75 HESJEDAL, Ryder CAN GARMIN-BARRACUDA +29:06
76 GAVAZZI, Francesco ITA ASTANA +31:41
77 TEN DAM, Laurens NED RABOBANK +32:11
78 VANDEWALLE, Kristof BEL OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP +32:24
79 MORI, Manuele ITA LAMPRE - ISD +32:59
80 CARDOSO S., Andre Fernando Martins POR CAJA RURAL
81 CASAR, Sandy FRA FDJ-BIG MAT +33:02
82 SABATINI, Fabio ITA LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE +33:19
83 SIMON CASULLERAS, Jordi ESP ANDALUCIA +33:40
84 APPOLLONIO, Davide ITA SKY PROCYCLING +33:43
85 DIDIER, Laurent LUX RADIOSHACK-NISSAN +35:40
86 KOHLER, Martin SUI BMC RACING +36:25
87 AZANZA SOTO, Jorge ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI +36:32
88 KOSTYUK, Denys UKR LAMPRE - ISD +37:05
89 BRUSEGHIN, Marzio ITA MOVISTAR +37:20
90 BELKOV, Maxim RUS KATUSHA +37:56
91 BERTAGNOLLI, Leonardo ITA LAMPRE - ISD +37:58
92 MARINO, Jean Marc FRA SAUR - SOJASUN +38:02
93 MOUREY, Francis FRA FDJ-BIG MAT +38:45
94 DE LA FUENTE RASILLA, David ESP CAJA RURAL +40:39
95 CLEMENT, Stef NED RABOBANK +40:50
96 BONO, Matteo ITA LAMPRE - ISD +41:35
97 LONGO BORGHINI, Paolo ITA LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE +42:50
98 HOWES, Alex USA GARMIN-BARRACUDA +45:42
99 SPRICK, Matthieu FRA PROJECT 1T4I +45:54
100 HUPOND, Thierry FRA PROJECT 1T4I +46:18
101 HUGUET, Yann FRA PROJECT 1T4I +47:07
102 KEIZER, Martijn NED VACANSOLEIL-DCM +47:35
103 DAVIS, Allan AUS ORICA-GREENEDGE +47:41
104 VANENDERT, Dennis BEL LOTTO BELISOL +48:20
105 ROBERTS, Luke AUS SAXO BANK +49:51
106 BEPPU, Fumiyuki JPN ORICA-GREENEDGE
107 NOVAL GONZALEZ, Benjamin ESP SAXO BANK +50:36
108 ROSENDO PRADO, Jesus ESP ANDALUCIA +51:12
109 CABEDO, Victor ESP EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI +51:20
110 POSSONI, Morris ITA LAMPRE - ISD +53:04
111 VANOTTI, Alessandro ITA LIQUIGAS-CANNONDALE +54:18
112 CARRASCO GARCIA, Sergio ESP ANDALUCIA +55:03
113 RAMIREZ ABEJA, Javier ESP ANDALUCIA +55:18
114 RENEV, Sergey KAZ ASTANA
115 ZINGLE, Romain BEL COFIDIS, LE CREDIT EN LIGNE +57:15
116 HAEDO, Juan José ARG SAXO BANK +58:07
117 CANO, Jose Luis ESP ANDALUCIA +59:29
118 CESAR VELOSO, Gustavo ESP ANDALUCIA
119 LANCASTER, Brett AUS ORICA-GREENEDGE
120 KASHECHKIN, Andrey KAZ ASTANA +59:35
121 BANDIERA, Marco ITA OMEGA PHARMA-QUICKSTEP +1:00:00
122 SANCHEZ PIMIENTA, Julian ESP CAJA RURAL +1:02:32
123 GALDOS ALONSO, Aitor ESP CAJA RURAL +1:09:57

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