After a fairly anonymous performance in the opening part of Paris-Nice Denis Menchov (Katusha) finally showed his strength with a strong attack on the final mountain of Montagne de Lure. In the end he was passed by eventual winner Richie Porte (Team Sky), but the Russian was encouraged by his performance.

After having shown strong form with a 4th place in Volta ao Algarve and an 8th in GP Citta di Camaiore, Denis Menchov (Katusha) entered Paris-Nice as a dark horse for overall victory. Bad position on the descent of the final climb in the third stage meant that he lost more than a minute to new leader Richie Porte, and his GC hopes were completely dashed.

Today the former Vuelta a Giro winner bounced back with a strong performance in the race's queen stage. After a number of unsuccessful attacks from a wide range of contenders, Menchov was the one to finally produce one that stuck. He burst clear to go on the hunt for his first victory of the season.

In the end he was passed by Porte, but he managed to keep the rest of the favourites at bay to secure a fine 2nd place. The attack was part of a pre-race plan, and Menchov was satisfied by the way he carried it out.

"Today we planned to try something in the final climb," Menchov said. "I felt good during the stage, in the last part I tried to save some energies for my attack. I think I attacked in the right moment. I did my best to take the victory, but in the last km Porte passed me, he had too high speed, so I could not follow him. Anyways, I'm quite happy with my performance and the team's one. It was an important test for us. But, of course, I'm a little disappointed because I didn't win".

With today's performance Menchov is 19th in the GC 1.41 behind Porte. Katusha has, however, still a number of cards to play with Simon Spilak in 9th and Alberto Losada in 13th.

Paris-Nice continues tomorrow with its longest stage, 220 km from Manosque to Nice. It is a hilly affair offering a perfect opportunity for attackers to make a breakaway stick to the end.