A delighted Dan Martin takes the stage in the Volta a Catalunya yesterday
By Brian Canty
New Volta A Catalunya race leader, Dan Martin has hailed the efforts of his team-mate Ryder Hesjedal in facilitating his win in yesterday’s epic stage four of the race.
Martin soloed to one of the biggest wins of his career and now leads the overall by 10 seconds from Joaquim Rodriguez but said it wouldn’t have been possible but for the efforts of the Canadian.
Speaking to stickybottle last night he said the win was still sinking in and though he knows it will be hard to control the race for the remaining three days, he believes his team are up to it.
“It took a while to sink because I pulled myself inside out to try and win it,” he said afterwards. “After (Wednesday) it was a bit of a surprise because I didn’t wake up feeling too sharp today. I felt a bit groggy but I got on the bike and felt pretty good and followed my instincts the same as the first day, just followed my instincts and followed the wheels. I saw that Movistar were struggling to control the race and ended up in the front with Ryder (Hesjedal). He rode incredible and really showed why he is the Giro champion, he just smashed himself on the front for me all day and I think he probably did 50 per cent of the work of the breakaway or probably even more. He was a one man motorbike.”
Advertisement
Related News
Martin played it cute himself, sitting in and saving his energy for when he needed it.
“I had an armchair ride,” he said.
“I was in the breakaway but I didn’t touch the front. In my opinion it’s easier being in the front than in the peloton because you have to mind your position on the climbs. I showed really good legs on the climb there at the finish but the last 2km was endless.”
When asked can he win the race he said he’s not concerned whether they can or not.
“I’m not even worried about it,” he explained.
“I got my win this week and whatever comes next is a bonus. I’ve come second twice in this race before, a third time doesn’t really appeal too much! But Joaquim is going to be really hard to hold off but I’ve a really strong team here and the course seems to suit that I’ve got a 10-second advantage. It’s going to be an interesting race, especially Sunday; it’s a really hard circuit in Barcelona. It really suits Joaquim but that means it suits me too. I’ve got pretty good form and we’re not leading the team classification for no reason. We’ve a really strong team here. It’s going to be a long three days but we’re ready.”
Topics
