In 2011 he won a stage at the Tour of the Basque Country and finished second behind Philippe Gilbert at both the Amstel Gold Race and La Flèche Wallonne.
He later finished fifth at the Giro d'Italia and won the stages to Le Collet d'Allevard and La Toussuire in the Critérium du Dauphiné, where he won the points and mountains classifications and finished fifth overall.
He skipped the Tour de France to concentrate on the races at the end of the season, mainly the Vuelta a España, where he was considered a possible candidate for winning the race.
He started the second half of the season by finishing fourth at the Clásica de San Sebastián and winning the overall classification and a stage at the Vuelta a Burgos.
He started the Vuelta a España with stage victories at Valdepeñas de Jaén and San Lorenzo de El Escorial, where he captured the leader's jersey, but soon faded and eventually finished the race nineteenth overall.
He ended the season with a third place at the Giro di Lombardia.
In 2011 he won a stage at the Tour of the Basque Country and finished second behind Philippe Gilbert at both the Amstel Gold Race and La Flèche Wallonne. He later finished fifth at the Giro d'Italia and won the stages to Le Collet d'Allevard and La Toussuire in the Critérium du Dauphiné, where he won the points and mountains classifications and finished fifth overall. He skipped the Tour de France to concentrate on the races at the end of the season, mainly the Vuelta a España, where he was considered a possible candidate for winning the race. He started the second half of the season by finishing fourth at the Clásica de San Sebastián and winning the overall classification and a stage at the Vuelta a Burgos. He started the Vuelta a España with stage victories at Valdepeñas de Jaén and San Lorenzo de El Escorial, where he captured the leader's jersey, but soon faded and eventually finished the race nineteenth overall. He ended the season with a third place at the Giro di Lombardia.
Joaquim Rodríguez