Sacha Modolo has been unstoppable since joining Lampre-Merida for the 2014 season and today he added his fourth win to his tally when he won the opening stage of the Volta ao Algarve. In a dominant Lampre showing, it was his teammate Rui Costa who ended second after having closed down a late attack from Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-Quick Step), and the Italian was proud to have been led out by the rainbow jersey.

Sacha Modolo has been known as a solid sprinter for several years and prior to the season he was rewarded for his many good results for Bardiani by a WorldTour contract with Lampre-Merida. The signing was praised as a wise one but few would have expected it to pay dividends as quickly as it has done.

After having won a stage in the Tour de San Luis and two races in the Challenge Mallorca, Modolo took his fourth win in less than a month when he won the opening stage of the Volta ao Algarve. In an impressive Lampre-Merida showing, it was his teammate, local hero and world champion Rui Costa who finished 2nd.

Costa had played the role of loyal domestique in the finale when he closed down a dangerous attack from Michal Kwiatkowski who had used a small hill to attack. In the past, that hill has often denied the sprinters the chance to battle it out for the win and it was imperative for the world champion to bring back the strong Pole.

Modolo was well-placed on Costa' wheel and took a very convincing sprint win to become the first leader of the race.

"It was a dream for me to have Rui Costa in his world champion’s jersey leading me out. Rui Costa is a gentleman" he said at the finish.

"It was a wonderful day that ended in the best possible way," he added. "In the pre-race meeting, I was given the captaincy role and it was nice to see how my teammates have done their jobs excellently during the race. Cattaneo and Oliveira worked hard to keep the 5-rider escape under control, Horner and Polanc helped me when I punctured 30km from the finish and Ferrari and Richeze allowed to ride the final part of the race at the front of the peloton.

"At the end, we had some difficulties. We reached a roundabout at low speed ahead of a decisive climb. Rui Costa asked how I felt. I told him that my legs were good and on the approach to the climb, he rode hard and so tried to anticipate the remaining sprinters. I got perfect help, a lead-out from the world champion makes me proud: Rui was perfect!"

"I want to thank the team and all my teammates. In a short time we have created a perfect understanding. Let me refer to an episode with 10km to go. We were a bit disorganized but a few looks at each other was enough for us to find our positions in the peloton, ready to tackle the finale.

"I will continue to work with humility and to give my maximum in the daily workouts and follow the programme given by my team. I do not want to set any specific goals or raise the bar of expectations. I am fine riding without worrying about the results. It is the right thing to do."

Modolo also took the chance to honour the two cyclists who have passed away in recent days.

"On a beautiful day like today, I feel obliged to mention two guys who loved cycling like me and that have now left us. I did not know Kristof Goddaert and Yung Hwan Youm personally but it pains me a lot that they are no longer here."

Modolo faces a tough ask if he wants to defend his leader's jersey. A 4.6km climb with an average gradient of 7.6% is located just 5.8km from the finish in tomorrow's second stage and Modolo admits that it is now time for Costa to take over the captaincy role.

"Tomorrow I will work for Rui Costa and Chris [Horner],"he said. "Rui feels very good. I don’t think I’ve got much chance of holding onto the leader’s jersey given the profile of tomorrow’s stage, but I hope that I can hand it on to Rui. Let’s hope that he can win tomorrow’s stage."

Costa was pleased to see his new teammate take the win.

"It was a difficult stage," he said. "We knew we had a very strong rider, Sacha Modolo, who could win. It is not a normal sprint as the final 500m are very hard. Sacha is in good shape and this is a good result for us. I am not surprised by this victory."

Lampre-Merida directeur sportif Maxtin Joxean Fernàndez was just as pleased as his riders with the result.

"Our tactics worked out perfectly. Kwiatkowski jumped away on the final hill, but Rui was ready and reacted well to that move," he explained. "Then he eased off with the intention of working for Modolo and by doing that he managed to not only set Sacha up for the stage but also gain some bonus seconds for himself in the overall.

"It’s important for Sacha to beat Cavendish and those other good sprinters behind him, it’s important for the team too. That’s his fourth win of the season already. It’s also important for Rui, because it shows him that he’s got a good team behind him, that there are other riders who win races, that we’re a good group, and that we’re all prepared to work for each other."

You can read our preview of the race here.