A mountaintop finish would have helped the situation. I was real surprised that (many finishes) came down to a field sprint. ... Although those kinds of races are exciting, a mountaintop finish is probably needed.

It was a very difficult time trial, and it set the GC group (the top contenders) apart. There was not much time for other riders to fight back; it was almost impossible to get that time back.

He knows those roads like the back of his hand. Plus, he's riding really strong right now.

For us, it's become our most important race. But it's February. The European teams could see this as purely a training race because guys are gearing up for the Tour de France.

This race is super important for us. The Tour of California is one of the biggest races in the United States -- this and (the Tour de) Georgia -- and we're racing against European teams. We will have to step up to it.