Porte claims Volta title despite Valverde surge

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Team Sky's Richie Porte won the Volta a Catalunya on Sunday despite a superb final-stage performance from Alejandro Valverde.

Porte held a five-second lead over Ag2r-La Mondiale's Domenico Pozzovivo going into the final stage in Barcelona.

Movistar rider Valverde started the day 16 seconds back in the general classification but launched an assault for the victory with an impressive display.

The Spaniard claimed two bonus seconds on an intermediate sprint and attacked on the last of the eight ascents of the Alt de Montjuc, holding off the pursuit of Porte's team-mates to take the stage triumph in a bunch-sprint finish.

Valverde's efforts saw him seal the 10 bonus seconds available but were not enough to earn him overall success as he finished four seconds adrift of Porte, whose win comes two weeks after he emerged victorious in the Paris-Nice.

Pozzovivo finished a second further behind in third, with Tinkoff Saxo's Alberto Contador - likely to be Porte's main rival in the Giro d'Italia in May, taking fourth overall ahead of Rigoberto Uran (Etixx Quick-Step).

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