The slopes of Porte Ainé in stage four of the Volta a Catalunya saw Nairo Quintana (Movistar) produce his first major show of strength in the 2016 season, in the shape of an all-out attack that left the formidable line-up of rival contenders reeling - and himself in the lead.
Quintana’s devastating surge away from Alberto Contador (Tinkoff) in the closing kilometres of the Porte Ainé climb saw him take second on the stage behind Thomas de Gendt (Lotto-Soudal), and a good 15 seconds clear of Contador and Richie Porte (BMC Racing).
Sixth on the La Molina climb the previous day when he lost seven seconds to Contador, Quintana is now the overall leader of the Volta a Catalunya and with three relatively straightforward stages remaining, he will be very difficult to dislodge from that position.
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“We had Immanol [Erviti, Movistar team-mate] ahead in the break of the day and we wanted to respect his chances first of all,” Quintana said afterwards. “But then the race was moving very fast behind and once it all came together, I launched a really big attack.
“I’ve been taking good care of myself and I am satisfied, because this leader’s jersey is the reward for all those sacrifices.”
Quintana did not, he said, make his move when he saw that Contador was struggling, rather the Colombian was convinced of his own chances and knew that if he wanted to take the lead, he had to go clear.
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