2010 Caisse d'Epargne season

The 2010 season for the Caisse d'Epargne cycling team began in January with the Tour Down Under and ended in October at the Giro di Lombardia.

After lengthy legal proceedings, the team's top rider Alejandro Valverde was given a global two-year ban on May 31, backdated to January 1.

Since he was, in essence, banned for all of the 2010 season, the results he obtained before the Court of Arbitration for Sport's decision came down were vacated and awarded to previously second-placed riders.

[3] Valverde had a chance at victory in the undulating third stage of the race, holding the wheel of world champion Cadel Evans in a select leading group.

[7] Later in the month, Sánchez won the individual time trial which closed out the Volta ao Algarve, finishing that event second overall.

After then-race leader Vincenzo Nibali sustained a mechanical issue which necessitated a bike change, Arroyo was one of a handful of riders to follow a timely attack from Alexander Vinokourov.

Arroyo was in the pink jersey with two minutes on Basso and three stages left to race, and was at this point entertaining the idea that he could win the Giro.

[17] In stage 19, Basso, his teammate Nibali, and Michele Scarponi easily dropped Arroyo on the climb of the Passo del Mortirolo.

Arroyo rode a very aggressive descent, and caught Carlos Sastre, John Gadret, Evans, and Vinokourov, who had been between him and the leading Italian trio.

[20] Sánchez led the team's squad at the Tour de France, along with newly crowned Spanish road race champion Gutiérrez.

Absent from the race were the newly suspended Valverde and Soler, who had planned to start but withdrew due to a knee injury sustained in the Critérium du Dauphiné.

[24][25] Perget again showed combativity in stage 7, finishing fifth in a three-man group that crossed the line 7 seconds ahead of the main peloton.

Sánchez and Moreau were part of the day's breakaway, and stayed away (though they were joined by overall favorites Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck, who did not contest the finish).

[27] Astana rode in support of Contador's bid for a third Tour title and Team RadioShack had no overall contender (due to Lance Armstrong falling well out of contention after stage 8).

[32] The team did their best to remain combative, placing two riders in the breakaway in stage 16 to match RadioShack's representation, but the four-minute gap that faced them at that point was too much to overcome.

Unzue stated that he was confident about his team's chances to secure a podium place in the race, and commented that Arroyo, Sánchez, Bruseghin, Plaza, or Urán could all potentially emerge as the squad's leader and protected rider.

While the stage victory went to David Moncoutié, a member of the morning breakaway, Bruseghin, Plaza, and Urán all finished near the top riders in the race.

He rode away from the last four who remained with him on the stage-concluding Alto de Revolcat and arrived in Alcoy six seconds ahead of Roman Kreuziger for the stage win.

Erviti made the morning escape, and then soloed to victory by taking an aggressive descent down the Alto de Rat Penat, winning by 37 seconds over Cofidis' Romain Zingle.

Antón won the stage, and Bruseghin, Urán, and Plaza finished in the top eleven on the day to occupy sixth through eighth in the new overall standings, giving the team many options going forward.