THIS WEEK IN PRO CYCLING
Landis triumphs at Paris-Nice
Floyd Landis won more than Paris-Nice on Sunday. He secured the trust and confidence of his Phonak teammates as they look confidently toward this summer’s Tour de France.
His teammates rallied around Landis to preserve his slender nine-second margin in Sunday’s nervous, four-climb finale to win his second major stage race inside a month.
And in the process, the team and Landis promoted themselves as one of the favorites for July.
"The most important thing was the confidence of the team and their ability to stay focused on the race," Landis said. "As far as confidence for the Tour, this is a not Tour de France-level race in March. But winning the last two races have been very good for team morale and our confidence in the team’s ability to work together to defend the jersey."
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Despite a flat tire and a crash on an early descent – perhaps the only two things that could have denied him the victory – Landis finished safely tucked inside the lead group of 25 riders on the 135km circuit over three Cat. 1 climbs high above Nice.
Marcus Zberg (Gerolsteiner) took a brave stage victory after being dropped three times up the final Col d’Eze climb, winning a four-up sprint just 18 seconds ahead of the hard-charging Landis group.
The win is the biggest of Landis’s career and comes on the heels of victory in the Amgen Tour of California last month. Landis snagged the yellow-and-white leader’s jersey in Wednesday’s difficult climbing stage and relied on his under-appreciated Phonak team to fend off attacks in the closing weekend, including keeping a dangerous, 19-man break on a short leash in Saturday’s eight-climb stage.
"It was a difficult race to win because there were no mountaintop finishes and there were no long time trials," Landis said. "In some ways I was lucky. I had a good day on a very difficult stage. At the Tour, you don’t get lucky and win. You have to be good every day for three weeks."
While many were keen to spin ahead to conjecture about the Tour, Landis was happy to enjoy the moment. Teammates and friends in the peloton were quick to congratulate the laid-back Californian.
"Floyd really deserves this," said Phonak team owner Andy Rihs. "He’s come to our team and really become our leader. Everyone wants to work for him because everyone likes him."
That goodwill should count for a lot in the coming months. Landis’s racing schedule includes the Criterium International, the Tour de Georgia and the Giro d’Italia, but he said he won’t race with any pressure until July.
Sunday’s final stage was frenetic as several riders broke free early. David Moncoutie (Cofidis) led the way over the day’s first of three Cat. 1 climbs at the Col de la Porte to secure his second consecutive King of the Mountains jersey.
Landis punctured and tumbled on the descent — he would cross the line with a strawberry on his right hip — but was otherwise able to continue in the race unhampered.
Things spiced up on the final passage at Col d’Eze 16km to go. Joaquim Rodriguez (Illes Balears) and Alberto Contador (Liberty Seguros) dropped Zberg and everyone else left in the early break.
Zberg fought back twice only to be dropped a third time with about 2km to go on the climb.
In the main bunch, Evgeni Petrov (Lampre) pulled away in a bid for the stage. The Russian eventually reeled in Zberg to cross the summit about 45 seconds back. The pair chased back on during the descent.
Taking a flier out of the main bunch was Toni Colom (Illes Balears), who eventually latched onto Contador, Rodriguez, Petrov and Zberg. Rodriguez faded, but Colom finished with the leaders to bounce ahead of Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel) to grab the final spot on the podium.
Defending champion Bobby Julich (CSC) didn’t start following his crash in Saturday’s stage. Tom Boonen (Quick Step) was among the day’s 21 abandons, giving Sanchez a consolation prize with the points jersey. Luis Leon Sanchez (Liberty Seguros) won the best young rider’s jersey while Lampre took the team prize.
Top 10
1. Marcus Zberg (Swi), Gerolsteiner, 3:29:38
2. Evgeni Petrov (Rus), Lampre, same time
3. Alberto Contador (Sp), Liberty Seguros, s.t.
4. Antonio Colom (Sp), Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears, s.t.
5. Joaquim Rodriguez (Sp), Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears, at 0:16
6. Sandy Casar (F), Francaise des Jeux, at 0:18
7. Erik Dekker (Nl), Rabobank, s.t.
8. Matteo Carrara (I), Lampre, s.t.
9. Linus Gerdemann (G), T-Mobile, s.t.
10. Cyril Dessel (F), Ag2r Prevoyance, s.t.
Completeresults
Final overall
1. Floyd Landis (USA), Phonak, 31:54:41
2. Xabier Vila Errandonea Patxi (Sp), Lampre, at 0:09
3. Antonio Colom (Sp), Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears, at 1:05
4. Samuel Sanchez (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, at 1:13
5. Frank Schleck (Lux), CSC, at 1:22
6. José Azevedo (P), Discovery Channel Pro Cycling, at 1:35
7. Erik Dekker (Nl), Rabobank, at 1:38
8. Pietro Caucchioli (I), Credit Agricole, at 1:39
9. José Luis Rubiera (Sp), Discovery Channel Pro Cycling, at 1:40
10. Christopher Horner (USA), Davitamon-Lotto, at 1:43
CompleteresultsFinal Overall Points
1. Samuel Sanchez (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, 66 Pts.
2. Sandy Casar (F), Francaise des Jeux, 63 Pts.
3. Pineau Jérôme (F), Bouygues Telecom, 52 Pts.
4. Frank Schleck (Lux), CSC, 50 Pts.
5. Matteo Carrara (I), Lampre, 49 Pts.
6. Andrey Kashechkin (Kaz), Liberty Seguros, 48 Pts.
7. Erik Dekker (Nl), Rabobank, 46 Pts.
8. Joaquim Rodriguez (Sp), Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears, 42 Pts.
9. Alberto Contador (Sp), Liberty Seguros, 42 Pts.
10. Antonio Colom (Sp), Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears, 40 Pts.
CompleteresultsFinal KOM
1. David Moncoutie (F), Cofidis, 51 Pts.
2. Christophe Laurent (F), Agritubel, 42 Pts.
3. Joaquim Rodriguez (Sp), Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears, 39 Pts.
4. Nicolas Crosbie (F), Agritubel, 35 Pts.
5. Alberto Contador (Sp), Liberty Seguros, 26 Pts.
6. Evgeni Petrov (Rus), Lampre, 25 Pts.
7. Eric Leblacher (F), Francaise des Jeux, 23 Pts.
8. Marcus Zberg (Swi), Gerolsteiner, 17 Pts.
9. Matej Mugerli (SLO), Liquigas-Bianchi, 17 Pts.
10. Sergio Paulinho (P), Liberty Seguros, 17 Pts.
CompleteresultsOverall Team Standings
1. Lampre-Fondital
2. Discovery Channel Team, 00:03
3. Liberty Seguros, 00:34
4. Credit Agricole, 04:12
5. Caisse D’epargne-Illes Balears, 08:52
6. Phonak Hearing Systems, 09:05
7. Euskaltel - Euskadi, 10:46
8. Francaise Des Jeux, 11:19
9. Davitamon - Lotto, 13:46
10. Ag2r Prevoyance, 14:10
CompleteresultsIndividual ProTour Standings after Paris-Nice
1. Floyd Landis (USA) - 52 points
2. Patxi Vila (Sp) - 43
3. Toni Colom (Sp) - 35
4. Samuel Sanchez (Sp) - 31
5. Frank Schleck (Lux) - 25
6. JosZ Azevedo (Por) - 20
7. Erik Dekker (Ned) - 15
8. Pietro Caucchioli (I) 10
9. Tom Boonen (B) - 9
10. Allan Davis (Aus) - 6
