Liege-Bastogne-Liege 2008

Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne) won the 2008 Liege-Bastogne-Liege after out sprinting breakaway companions Davide Rebellin (Gerolsteiner) and Frank Schleck (Team CSC).

Alejandro Valverde celebrates with team mate Joaquim Rodriguez - Pic fotoreporter sirotti

Valverde admitted that past knowledge of the race proved vital, but said that not starting as the favourite had been his biggest advantage.

"This year I've raced less but trained a lot more in Spain, so actually racing gave me a lot of motivation today," said the Spaniard, who this year more than most will be a contender for the Tour de France yellow jersey - which along with the Olympic Games is his big objective.

"The fact that victory here wasn't one of my aims and that I wasn't a big favourite took some of the pressure of me."

Much of the race focused on the effect the penultimate climb, the steep and narrow Roche aux Faucons, would have on the big contenders. However the favourites were forced to rethink their gameplan before then, when Andy Schleck attacked on the formidable Cote de la Redoute 34.5km from the finish.

He was joined by German Stefan Schumacher, the Gerolsteiner teammate of Rebellin, and they overtook Frenchman Pierre Rolland, the last remaining rider from an early five-man breakaway, on the Cote de Sprimont 28km from the finish. They held a lead of 20sec on the main peloton and all the favourites at the foot of the Roche aux Faucons, but after Schleck dropped Schumacher he was joined near the summit by his brother Franck, Valverde and his teammate Joaquim Rodriguez and Rebellin. "On the Roche I was watching Evans and Cunego," added Valverde.

"And when (Frank) Schleck, Rodriguez and Rebellin went off I saw that Cunego and Evans couldn't follow. That's when I decided to go for it myself."

Team Milram's Christian Knees: "I was in good shape today and felt good, too. But I had a few problems on the third-from-last cllimb and had to fall back. That's why I didn't finish higher. Now I have ridden all the big Classics for the first time and think that I have continued to improve in all of them.“

A tired looking Davide Rebellin - Pic fotoreporter sirotti

Jochen Hahn, Milram team director said; "It was the difficult race that we expected. We were focussed on Andrey Grivko and Igor Astarloa. Andrey had bad luck on the first climb with a mechanical problem which threw him back. Igor simply didn't have a good day. But Christian Knees tried his best and presented himself very well in his premiere in Lüttich-Bastogne-Lüttich.“

Davide Rebellin victory 2004 rounded off a superb week in which he won the Amstel Gold Race and the Fleche Wallonne classics.

But in the end the 36-year-old Gerolsteiner rider fell victim to the younger legs of 28-year-old Valverde, who mastered the hot conditions and tough climbs to finish top of the 133 finishers. "I thought about attacking in the final kilometre, but I just had nothing left," said Rebellin. "I decided to wait for the sprint, in the hope he (Valverde) would be as tired as me. In the end, the fastest rider won."

Luxembourg's Frank Schleck finished third after failing to turn what appeared to be a tactical advantage into a maiden win on the one race he is so desperate to win.

He was part of the four-man lead group which broke away inside the final 20 km, and which also included his CSC teammate and younger brother Andy, the runner-up in last year's Giro d'Italia.

However after Andy Schleck soon tired. "Right after I attacked I realised I wasn't going to maintain the pace," admitted Andy Schleck. "I quickly warned Frank through my radio piece and told him it was up to him."

After he was reeled in, Frank was left with the two riders he would have least preferred to contend the final with. In the end, his earlier efforts in staying with Valverde and Rebellin as they distanced a larger bunch of contenders took their toll as they rode over the final five kilometres through the hilly Saint Nicolas quarter.

But after just missing out on victory at Amstel last week, won by Italian Damiano Cunego of Lampre, Frank Schleck was happy with his positive classics campaign. "I didn't win but I've got two podiums in the classics now after my second place at Amstel last week. I have to be pleased with that," said Schleck, who was also third here last year when Valverde finished behind Italian Danilo Di Luca.

He poured out plaudits to his younger brother Andy, who, at only 22 years old, has shown he has the legs to become a future Liege champion. "Andy did a lot of work for me in the final, but he also showed today he has what it takes to be a future champion in the classics," said Schleck. "We tried hard together but in the end we couldn't shake off Rebellin and Valverde, who was really strong." Valverde claimed that Frank Schleck was the "strongest", but added: "But Rebellin and me were the fastest."

Cadel Evans said; "I hoped for more today, but I'm just a part-time classics rider so I can't be too disappointed. I was more surprised to be (so) good at Fleche Wallonne than I was to be bad today. "That's the way it goes. July (the Tour de France) is going to be when everyone says whether my year has been good or bad. "I'll keep working towards that."