José Joaquin Rojas, looking ahead

José Joaquin Rojas is satisfied with third place overall at the Tour Down Under and wants to carry that momentum into the first races on the European calendar.

Crowned the best young rider of the Aussie ProTour season opener, the Spanish sprinter was among the top five in three of the six stages to secure a final podium spot.

The 25-year-old Caisse d’Epargne rider matched his third-place from 2008 and said the Aussie sprinters were up to the task to dominate on home roads.

“It just didn’t happen. The Australian sprinters were very well-prepared for their tour and Allan Davis was just a little bit better than all the other sprinters that were here,” Rojas said. “I was looking for a win, but I just couldn’t deliver despite all the hard work my team did for me during the race.”

Many are looking to Rojas as Spain’s next breakout sprinter. He won a stage at last year’s Mallorca Challenge and posted some consistent results despite some nasty crashes.

Rojas now sets his sights on the Mallorca Challenge (Feb. 8-12), where he hopes to repeat with a win during the series of one-day races on the Balearic island to officially open the Spanish 2009 calendar.

Caisse d’Epargne sport director Neil Stephens said he was satisfied with how his troops rode in the Tour Down Under.

“We were ahead every day and worked a lot to try and win a victory and that is a very important point because it shows the team motivation whereas the year has just started. I believe that this is something very positive and of good omen for this new season,” Stephens said in a team release.

“We did not win the stage in spite of desperately wanting it but we were very close thanks to José Joaquín Rojas and today, in the last stage, Luis León Sánchez, who made part of a 13-man breakaway together with Pablo Lastras, has been the virtual leader of the race during a few kilometers. We are close to the first place in the various rankings (Third overall with Rojas in the individual classification and second in the team classification), and we even won the best young rider classification, thanks to Rojas.”

Stephens also was optimistic about the performance by 2006 Tour de France champion Oscar Pereiro, who returned to competition for the first time since he horrendous crash off a switchback in the Italian Alps during the 2008 Tour.

“Tomorrow we will fly to Europe, happy, wishing to compete very soon, and with Oscar Pereiro who showed here that he is much better than one could think and who, even if he still has to work a lot, will not be long in reaching his best level,” Stephens said.

FILED UNDER: Road TAGS: Tour Down Under