LAGUNA DE PECES, Spain (AP) — Alberto Contador fell out of contention at the Vuelta de Castilla and Leon on Friday after getting a flat tire near the end of a mountainous third stage won Filippo Savini.
The Tour de France champion had to deal with a pair of flats for the second time in three days, with the second puncture coming just two kilometers from the finish.
Savini won the 98-mile leg in 3 hours, 58 minutes, 25 seconds to edge Bauke Mollema of Rabobank and Colnago-CSF Inox teammate Domenico Pozzovivo.
Contador, a three-time champion in the race, finished nearly three minutes behind Savini.
Mollema is the new overall leader by 3 seconds with a total time of 13:17.52.
