Chris Froome showed rare signs of weakness in today's first big mountain stage of the Volta a Catalunya where his attacks failed to make a difference. Instead, he drifted backwards near the end but he claims to be satisfied with today's 5th place that comes in his first race back after injury.

Chris Froome lit up the third stage of the Volta a Catalunya and crossed the line in fifth position after Joaquim Rodriguez had claimed a hard-fought triumph in La Molina.

Froome produced two stinging attacks in the final kilometre as a reduced peloton ascended to the Pyrenean ski resort, and only three riders could initially follow those moves which brought the main protagonists to the fore.

Rodriguez had been among that trio, and the Katusha rider hugged Froome’s wheel before launching the decisive kick of the day in the last 200m which saw him surge clear and wrap up his victory five seconds ahead of Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo).

Nairo Quintana (Movistar) took third place, nine seconds adrift, and Froome crossed the line four seconds later behind BMC’s Tejay van Garderen.

Those results mirrored the new general classification as no bonus seconds were awarded at the finish meaning Rodriguez now holds a five-second advantage over Contador at the top of the standings, with Froome 13 seconds down.

Immediately after the stage Froome was pleased with his performance and believes his form is returning after his recent back problem.

“I’ve come back after a long period of racing and I was really happy with today," he told his team website. "Okay I didn’t win the stage and I lost a bit of time in the final, but all things considered I’m really happy with my condition. Especially after taking a little bit of a break with my back problem, it’s a really positive sign for me to be at the front of the race again.

“We came into the last 500 metres and it had been quite fast until then. It wasn’t a very steep finish but it was more explosive. I thought ‘If I’m going to try anything, it might as well be here’. I gave it a little push but the main contenders – Rodriguez, Contador, Quintana and Tejay – all followed my wheel and accelerated past me.

“I’m happy I tried but I know I’ve got a lot of work to do on my condition.”

Froome praised the tactical nous his rivals had shown and admitted Thursday’s stage into Vallter 2000 could suit him better.

“They rode the race very well tactically. I was the first to move out of all of them, which was probably not the right thing to do but I tried. I did my race and they did their race. My teammates did a really good job today. It was quite a difficult stage with the cold. All day they were going backwards and forwards getting hot tea and good clothing. I really need to say thank you to them for doing a good job today.

“I think tomorrow will be more my style of racing. Again I’m here after a big break so I’m just hoping to do the best race possible and just to get that race feeling back into the legs again.”

You can read our preview of the fourth stage here and follow our live coverage at 15.15 CET on CyclingQuotes.com/live.