It only took one race with the NetApp team for André Schulze to arrive at a second place finish. During the mass sprint in Palma, only Andrew Fenn (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) crossed the finish line ahead of him. Third place went to Alexander Porsev (Katusha).

"That was a strong race today by André. He produced an exceptional first race with Team NetApp. But he wasn't the only one: the entire team performed well here today. They were very effective in laying the groundwork for André ahead of the sprint and put him into a tremendous position. I'm more than satisfied," said Sport Director Enrico Poitschke, praising the performance of the entire team.

Although there was actually some early morning snow, the Trofeo Palma started at 11:00 am at a sunny 10 degrees Celsius. A group of 13 riders broke away almost immediately on the 11.6 kilometer circuit course. "We weren't able to make the leap into this group and had to spend some time chasing after them. Once the escapees had been reeled back, the rest of the race went strictly according to plan. The entire team was riding for André, because the course was perfectly suited for his skills. We're hoping it will continue this way tomorrow!" Poitschke commented.

A sprint finish is expected again at tomorrow's Trofeo Migjorn, stretching 171.7 km from Migjorn to Campos. This course is not completely flat, however, and features several small climbs.

Trofeo Palma, 5 February: 116 km
Trofeo Migjorn, 6 February: 171.6 km
Trofeo Deià, 7 February: 151 km
Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana, 8 February: 160.2 km

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