Rodríguez Oliver victorious on mountaintop finish

Joaquín Rodríguez won the Vuelta a Burgos' second stage, arriving first at the category three San Juan del Monte mountaintop finish. Rodríguez attacked with 400 metres remaining in the stage, countering a move made by Italy's Francesco Masciarelli (Acqua & Sapone-Caffe Mokambo), and maintained a slim lead through to the finish.

Belgium's Ben Hermans (Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator) followed one second later in second place while Rodríguez's teammate Alejandro Valverde finished rounded out the top three in the same time as Hermans for the 153-kilometre stage.

"This stage was characterized by many attacks, but the team did a fantastic job to control the situation," said Rodríguez. "At the end things went exactly the way we decided beforehand. I felt very good, with excellent legs, and on such a finish, which is the ideal one for my abilities, I attacked at the right moment so that I could arrive with a short but sufficient gap."

Rodríguez benefited from the other riders' attention focused on Valverde. "Everybody thought I would try to attack," said Valverde. "I was in the perfect position to sprint just in case Rodríguez was caught before the line."

The stage victory moved Rodríguez into the race lead, previously held by Spain's Koldo Fernández (Euskaltel-Euskadi). Hermans and Valverde hold second and third respectively on general classification, each one second behind Rodríguez.

"Now we will try to defend the jersey even if the most difficult stages are still to come," said Rodríguez. "My current physical condition is another highlight after the problems I had during the last Giro d'Italia. All of this is a very good sign with only three weeks before the start of the Vuelta a España."

The riders face a relatively flat, 175-kilometre third stage on Friday, the longest of the Vuelta a Burgos. The stage, which starts and finishes in Burgos, includes three intermediate sprints and no classified climbs.

"A sprinter will probably win the stage tomorrow, but the individual time trial on Saturday and the very difficult stage on Sunday should change the general classification," said Valverde. "I hope it will be in my favor."