Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) took his first win of the year when he out-kicked French youngsters Arnaud Démare (FDJ.fr) and Bryan Coquard (Europcar) in the bunch finish in Vilamoura at the Volta ao Algarve.
Cavendish’s teammate Michal Kwiatkowski sealed final overall victory.
Though opportunities for sprinters were at a premium in Portugal, Omega Pharma-QuickStep brought a powerful lead-out train to the race and they were rewarded with victory on the final stage.
Cavendish had both Mark Renshaw and Alessandro Petacchi to guide him through the closing kilometres, and he paid tribute to their efforts afterwards.
“We controlled the race and everybody rode incredibly well,” Cavendish said.
“Super strong lead-out, everybody did their part. Alessandro Petacchi was the last guy and he dropped me off at about 170 meters, more or less. Perfectly executed.”
After failing to spark at the Tour de San Luis and the Dubai Tour, Cavendish’s lead-out was pitch perfect here, and the Manxman duly delivered a sprint finish to match it, fending off Démard and Coquard, as well as José Joaquin Rojas (Movistar) and the in-form Sacha Modolo (Lampre-Merida) in the final 100 metres. – Cyclingnews
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