Degenkolb takes Dubai lead

John Degenkolb (Giant-Alpecin) moved into the race lead and took stage win on Stage 3 of the Dubai Tour.

The 26-year-old attacked at the foot of the final climb and held out to cross the line first and move into the leader's jersey ahead of Saturday's final stage.

Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) finished second on the stage, two seconds behind Degenkolb, with team-mate Juan Jose Lobato coming in third with the same time.

The majority of the day's action happened inside the final five kilometres, as the peloton's major teams fought to control the race ahead of the testing final climb to the Hatta Dam.

Italian national champion and Tour de France winner Vincenzo Nibali continued to work for his team-mate Alexey Lutsenko and set a high tempo on the front as he tried to put the young Kazakh rider in a good position for the finish.

However, Nibali's hard work was undone as the riders moved into the final kilometre, with Giant-Alpecin moving to the front of the pack.

Lutsenko attempted to launch an attack as the race neared the 300-metre-long final climb of the day. However, he was unable to make it stick and as he faded, Degenkolb launched his own effort.

The German powered up the steep slopes, and although Valverde attempted to follow, the Spaniard had left it too late and Degenkolb held out for the win.

He will now wear the leader's jersey on Stage 4 on Saturday.