Astana’s tactical nous helped stamp out Saxo Bank’s efforts to unsettle overall Tour de France leader Alberto Contador on Tuesday and has given them extra confidence for the next mountain stage. Astana were tested by the rival team’s attack in the Alps but came through without Contador losing any time after the Spaniard, German Andreas Kloeden and seven-times champion Lance Armstrong finished the 16th stage in a group of favourites.
“We knew what was going to happen,†Astana team manager Johan Bruyneel told reporters.
“It was obvious, with (Fabian) Cancellara and (Jens) Voigt in the breakaway. When we saw that, we kind of figured out what their plan was: put two riders in front and try to attack from behind and have at least four riders together to launch an attack.â€Â  … Details