Gutiérrez ready for TT

Jose Iván Gutiérrez (Caisse d'Epargne) finished stage 3 in sixth place, and kept his fifth place overall on the general classification. "Under the red kite of the last kilometre, I was in the perfect position," he said right after the finish. "At that moment I was ninth and at 400 metres from the line I was in fact sixth, just on the world champion’s wheel.

My first intention was not to do the sprint, because I have no chance facing such sprinters like Boonen and Cadamuro. I was simply very attentive because the last kilometres are so fast it is very easy to lose some time there. You have to consider the fact that the bunch broke every day at the finish of the stage.

"It was very important for me to maintain my current position so that tomorrow I can take the start of the time trial in one of the very last positions. I am already completely concentrated on that stage because I think it will make the real decision in this race and I really believe in my possibilities."