Alberto Contador took the prologue with relative ease, but it was not his performance on the course but rather what he said afterwards that left some scratching their heads. The Spaniard won by 2 seconds over HTC's Tejay Van Garderen and 5 over third place Janez Brajkovic, and will be wearing yellow for tomorrow's stage. Contador was happy to win the stage, but only because he feels comfortable with his new time trial bike. What is even more confusing is that he said he "will be happy to give the yellow jersey to another rider." He believes that trying to defend the lead would be "too taxing" and that this was his plan for a while. Though he does mean business, his statements shouldn't be over-analyzed. Even if Contador isn't giving 100% effort, he may still be able to "coast" to a high finish in a race that is missing some of its top contenders. This does open the door for a rider like Menchov, who is currently sitting 24 seconds back in 35th position. This is a prestigious race, and it seems appropriate that it should go to someone who actually wants to win it. Tomorrow's stage will be the first real stage for the riders to navigate, though it looks quite mild.
This is quite possibly the flattest stage that the riders will have for the rest of the race, as the Criterium is often referred to as a "climber's race". This temporary flat terrain does allow for quite possibly a sprint finish tomorrow (meaning Contador will also keep his yellow if he finishes with the peloton). Regardless of what Contador decides, expect some good racing in the upcoming week.
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