Route du Sud: Contador wins stage 3 in Bagnères-de-Luchon

Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) and Nairo Quintana (Movistar) clashed as expected during the Queen stage of the Route du Sud but instead of fighting it out on the climb of the Port de Balès, Contador managed to distance Quintana on the long descent to Bagneres-de-Luchon.

The Giro d’Italia winner won alone in the spa resort in the Pyrenees, pointing to his sponsor logo on his jersey before firing off his Pistolero winning salute.

Quintana looked cool and collected on the climb, matching Contador on the climb but then lost contact with him on the testing descent. Once Contador got a gap on the descent, Quintana was unable close the gap and finished 13 seconds behind.

Young French rider Pierre-Roger Latour (Ag2r-La Mondiale) managed to go over the top of the Col des Bales with Contador and Quintana and finished third at 35 seconds.

Thanks to the time bonuses, Contador now leads Quintana in the overall classification by 17 seconds. Latour is third at 41 seconds.

The Route du Sud ends on Sunday with a 166km stage from Revel to Gaillac in the rolling hills of the Tarn region, meaning Contador is set for overall victory in his first race since triumphing at the Giro d’Italia.

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