After obliterating his rivals on stage one, and then having to contain the attacks of Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) on stage two, there will have been some relief for overall leader Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) when stage three proceeded largely as expected. Determined not to let an escape succeed again, the sprinters’ teams kept a high pace in the bunch early on before settling into a sedate rhythm as Ruben Fernandez (Caja Rural) formed a lone break.

And with Orica-GreenEDGE and Team Sky happy to share the workload on the front, it was left for Contador and his Tinkoff-Saxo team-mates to just maintain a safe position near the front of the bunch. And after safely negotiating the roundabout-laden final kilometre, Contador will feeling refreshed for another punchy stage four.