Rohan Dennis has quickly settled into life with Team Ineos and this week competed in his second stage race of the season with the British team. He was scheduled to be co-leader of the Volta ao Algarve until he was eliminated from overall contention on the second stage to Alto da Foia on Thursday.

Dennis said before the stage that he and Michał Kwiatkowski would be battling for the team lead in the race.

In the end, despite a great ride by Ben Swift at the front, the stage did not go as planned for Ineos, with Kwiatkowski finishing in 14th place, 27 seconds behind stage winner Remco Evenpole (Detunink-Quickstep). Dennis, meanwhile, finished 66th. However, this result does not mean a race loss for Dennis or his team.

"I don't know how my legs will hold up on that climb," he told Cycling News on the morning of the second stage.

"I don't know how my legs are going to handle that climb," he told Cycling News on the morning of stage two.

"The time trial is a big reason why I'm co-leader. Time trials generally take a lot of time, so if I can minimize everything throughout the week, it should be pretty good for me."

A 20.3km test around Lagoa awaits the Australian on the final day. This is a big advantage for Dennis, who has won 18 time trial races, including back-to-back World Championships in the past two years.

At the Tour Down Under in January, he started his 2020 campaign with success, finishing fourth in the Paracombe uphill finish and eighth in the Willunga Hill. He was 25 seconds behind winner Richie Porte (Trek-Segafredo), but missed the podium thanks to his individual stage finish.

"It would have been nice to be on the podium, but everyone from second to fifth had the same time. I knew it was going to be a close race, so I was hoping I could make up a second in the sprint, but it didn't happen."

"Fourth place is still good. It's a good way to start the season with some points. It also gives me motivation for my form. It's still early in the season, but it's good to start like this."

"After a short stay at Bahrain-Merida, the 29-year-old said the task of integrating into his new team was an easy one.

"I'm feeling really good and relaxed at the moment. We have a good group of people again for the race and we are not stressed. It's really seamless for us at the moment.

"I've known some of the riders through the track for a number of years, and obviously in the peloton we tend towards English-speaking riders. I've been a pro for seven years now, and in that time I've gotten to know them better, and that's a good thing."