Triumph in Vuelta a Valencia!

Alejandro Valverde has returned, perhaps he never left. As he demonstrated in the last Challenge of Mallorca, the Movistar Team cyclist has recovered his best pedal stroke after the fall suffered in the first stage of the Tour de France. The fractures and the long recovery period are history, as he has shown in the first races of 2018.

Valverde has closed the circle winning the second stage of the Tour of Valencia. He attacked on the ramps of El Garbí, a hard climb located 23 km from the finish line. Next to him has gone the Danish Jakob Fuglsang and later, already in the descent, his countryman Luis León Sánchez, both of the Astana team. The trio has worked perfectly until the finish in Albuixech, where Valverde has beaten his two rivals.

Statements: I want to thank the team, as they have worked very well during the stage. I would also have liked Luis León to win, but I had to take the opportunity. When i was training I felt very well but then the competition is quite different. In Mallorca I was surprised by my fitness, but I took a lot of caution in the descents because the road was very bad. I knew I could win here and the sooner the better. It is always good to take advantage with the other rivals, because the normal thing is that we lose time in the team time trial. Let’s see if with what I have taken today and what we can do tomorrow I can opt for the general on Saturday.

Valverde, who is the new leader of the general, will defend his yellow jersey in the team time trial of this Friday, with a distance of 23 km between Benitatxell and Calpe.

Photo: Movistar Team