waltergodefroot

Roberto won the general classification, tied with Petacchi for first in the Points Competition(!), won the Combination Competition, and finished 3rd in the Mountains Competition. WOW!

Sure the level of competition wasn't as high as the Tour De France, and maybe not even as high as the Giro, but Heras kicked butt this year.

Menchov gets a podium spot fulfilling expectations, although he really showed his weakness in the mountains. And Sastre adds to CSC success with a fine consistent performance. Danielson is the highest placed American. Mancebo really needs to race in the Giro, the Tour, and the Vuelta in the same year to see if he can finish all three in the top five, which would be a historical accomplishment.

And kudos to Petacchi for sticking around to the end with the worlds in a week. Till then...

kubla khan

I wish Roberto was in this kind of shape for the Tour, it would have been epic...

gcasillo

So was Petacchi awarded the points competition trophy, or does he share that with Heras who also had 169 pts.?

Perhaps Heras could have bagged more Vueltas had he not been committed to towing Lance around France? Another way of looking at it...

cedo

Wouldn't it be more accurate to say that Menchov had one bad day in the mountains? In fact, the news reports stated that in general he was quite strong in the hills. For the first few days of real climbing, he overachieved and Heras was surprised that Menchov stayed with him.

YMCA

Petacchi gets the points jersey because he had more stage wins. Surprised to see him ride out the Vuelta. Good for him. He must be feeling good going into World's this Sunday, otherwise he probably would have pulled out last week to rest a bit. Like many pro racers have said after completing a 3-week tour, "either your flying or your dead".

squeegy200

I remember him saying he would plan to drop out after stage 12. I'm glad he stayed in.

Roberto did a magnificent job this year. His time trialing was a surprise. Great work by a team leader!