“We leave this place with high morale and big confidence towards the future." Those are the words from José Luis Arrieta, Movistar Team sports director, as the centenary Volta a Catalunya concluded in Barcelona on Sunday with a short, fast 124km ride decided again into a sprint, with José Joaquín Rojas battling for the victory which came finally notched up by Frenchman Samuel Dumoulin (COF).

The Spaniard from Movistar Team eventually took 4th place after another piece of great work by his team, and concludes the week with another sign of impressive regularity, with a stage win, two second places, two days in third and today’s fourth spot. “This time he went boxed by Cardoso in the final kilometer, and even though he was overtaking the riders ahead, he lacked a bit more distance”, narrated Arrieta. “Still he has made a spectacular race. Making it into the best four in six out of seven stages in a World Tour race is really hard to beat. His favourite races are coming up just now, and if he finds that bit of luck he has been missing here, he can be contesting there. The overview is really positive and not only for him, but for the entire team’s attitude all week. We were on front in every single stage and we really worked like a team, in the same behaviour line we’ve been following through the season so far. Yesterday’s triumph was really important because it seemed we were not rewarded as we deserved with such huge work. But we showed that being there pays off at some point.” The notable protagonism by Movistar Team was crowned by the 6th place overall from Xavi Tondo, the race being won by Spaniard Alberto Contador.