Freire strikes again!

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Freire won for the second day in a row in Spain. Cor Vos photo.
Oscar Freire chalked up another win for Rabobank, scoring his second straight stage victory at Stage 3 of the Ruta del Sol stage race through southern Spain. Freire survived a tough, hilly 162.5-kilometer race from Marbella to Benahavis, and sped past Grega Bole (Lampre) and Simon Gerrans (Sky) to win the final sprint on his Giant TCR Advanced SL team bike.

Despite riding without Laurens Ten Dam, who was injured in a crash near the finish of Stage 2, the Rabobank team controlled the race, setting the pace over the final 15 kilometers and putting Freire in position to contest the final sprint.

Freire, the three-time world champion from Spain, is off to his best season start in years. The Stage 3 win at La Ruta, a traditional early-season stage race in Spain, was his third victory of the season.

Stage 4, a 10.9-kilometer time trial, is expected to be decisive in the General Classification. The race concludes on Thursday, February 25.

25 februari 2010