Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale) has won the fourth stage of the 2012 Tour de Suisse.

Sagan won his third stage of the race by outsprinting Movistar’s JJ Rojas at the end of the 188.8km stage from Aarberg to Trimbach.

The Czech rider’s Italian teammate, Moreno Moser, did much in the closing kilometres to pull back a three-strong lead group that included Team Sky’s Lars Petter Nordhaug.

“I don’t know how it would have gone without the super work done by Moreno,” said Sagan.

“He shut down every attack at the end of the race, letting me do the sprint I wanted: big thanks to Moreno and I hope I can return the favour soon.

“At the start I didn’t know quite what to expect from today’s race. The weather and the pace of the race made for a tight stage that was difficult to manage.

“I tried to save as much energy as possible hoping for a small bunch finish. The final sprint wasn’t easy to set up because there wasn’t a proper train.

“Holding onto to the first positions was crucial, and then I took my chance when Burghardt jumped and accelerated so no one could catch me.

“This is a happy period as everything I try works out alright. I know it won’t always be like this so I’ll capitalise on every opportunity while I can.”

Sagan’s latest triumph follows five stage wins at last month’s Tour of California, and early season stage victories at the Tour of Oman and Tirreno-Adriatico.

The battle among the overall contenders remained a stalemate, with leader, Rui Costa (Movistar) retaining an eight second lead over Frank Schleck (RadioShack-Nissan-Trek) in second place, and a 15 second gap to 2008 winner, Roman Kreuziger (Astana).

The trio focused on each other on the final climb, allowing Nordhaug, Martin Elminger (AG2R-La Mondiale) and BMC Racing’s Greg Van Avermaet to build a 35 second lead.

Their lead was diminished by the sustained efforts of Garmin-Barracuda, riding for Heinrich Haussler, Katusha, whose hopes were with Oscar Freire, and Moser.

Tomorrow’s 192.7km fifth stage from Trimbach to Gasingen takes the riders over an undulating parcours with a long drag to the finish that could suit a powerful sprinter. Sagan’s work may not yet be done.

Tour de Suisse stage four – result

1) Peter Sagan (SVK) – Liquigas-Cannondale – 4:36:55
2) Jose Joaquin Rojas (SPA) – Movistar
3) Michael Albasini (SWI) – Orica-GreenEDGE
4) Heinrich Haussler (AUS) – Garmin-Barracuda
5) Francesco Gavazzi (ITA)- Astana
6) Vladimir Gusev (RUS) – Katusha
7) Matteo Montaguti (ITA) – AG2R-La Mondiale
8) Wout Poels (NED) – Vacansoleil-DCM
9) Oscar Freire (SPA) – Katusha
10) Mathias Frank (SWI) – BMC Racing

General classification

1) Rui Costa (POR) – Movistar – 15:43:52
2) Frank Schleck (LUX) – RadioShack-Nissan-Trek + 8”
3) Roman Kreuziger (CZE) – Astana +15”
4) Thibaut Pinot (FRA) – FDJ-Big Mat            +19”
5) Nicolas Roche (IRL) – AG2R-La Mondiale +21”
6) Thomas Löfkvist (SWE) – Team Sky
7) Alejandro Valverde (SPA) – Movistar +23”
8) John Gadret (FRA) – AG2R-La Mondiale +24”
9) Mikel Nieve (SPA) – Euskaltel-Euskadi +26”
10) Thomas Danielson (USA) – Garmin-Barracuda +29”