Alejandro Valverde officially received his overall 2006 ProTour trophy in a special gala Saturday evening in Italy following the Giro di Lombardia despite an ugly catfight between the UCI and race organizers.

The Caisse d’Epargne-Illes Balears captain almost skipped the season finale following the ongoing spat between the UCI and race organizers RCS, which didn’t want to allow the UCI to present the ProTour jersey to Valverde on the post-race podium. Riders boycotted the podium, but Valverde received his moment in the spotlight later that evening in an awards ceremony sponsored by the UCI.

“To have the white jersey of the ProTour leader signifies I was one of the best all season long. I don’t know if I am the best rider, but I am the most consistent,” Valverde said in an interview with the Spanish daily AS. “I am very satisfied with how the season went, even though it could have been a little better. It’s been my most complete season.”

Valverde won Flèche Wallone and Liège-Bastogne-Liège in April to put a stranglehold on the ProTour standings and held the lead despite crashing out of the Tour de France with a broken collarbone.

The “Green Bullet” came back to finish second overall in the Vuelta a España and earn the bronze medal in the world road championships in September.

Valverde said he was satisfied to demonstrate his consistency, now he wants to land on the Tour podium. He’s abandoned in his first two starts, but expressed confidence he could be among the best in 2007.

“The Tour will be my top goal next year and now I want to be on the podium,” he said. “If I can earn the podium, it will be objective realized, but at the same time I don’t want to obsess over it. I don’t have it in my mind to go for it in a desperate manner.”ProTour rewind
Here’s a recap of the winners of the 26 races part of the 2006 ProTour series:
Paris-Nice: Floyd Landis, USA, PhonakTirreno-Adriatico: Thomas Dekker, Ned, RabobankMilan- San Remo: Filippo Pozzato, Ita, Quick Step-InnergeticTour of Flanders: Tom Boonen, Bel, Quick Step-InnergeticGhent-Wevelgem: Thor Hushovd, Nor, Credit AgricoleTour of the Basque Country: José Goméz Marchante, Spa, Saunier Duval-ProdirParis-Roubaix: Fabian Cancellara, Swi, Team CSCAmstel Gold Race: Frank Schleck, Lux, Team CSCFlèche Wallone: Alejandro Valverde, Spa, Caisse d’Epargne-Illes BalearsLiège-Bastogne-Liège: ValverdeTour de Romanie: Cadel Evans, Aus, Davitamon-LottoVolta a Catalunya: David Cañada, Spa, Saunier Duval-ProdirGiro d’Italia: Ivan Basso, Ita, Team CSCDauphiné Libéré: Levi Leipheimer, USA, GerolsteinerTour de Suisse: Jan Ullrich, Ger, T-MobileTeam time trial: Team CSCTour de France: Landis *Cyclassics: Oscar Freire, Spa, RabobankTour of Germany: Jens Voigt, Ger, Team CSCClásica San Sebastián: Xavier Florencio, Spa, Bouygues TelecomTour of Benelux: Stefan Schumacher, Ger, GerolsteinerGP Ouest France-Plouay: Vincenzo Nibali, Ita, LiquigasVuelta a España: Alexandre Vinokourov, Kaz, AstanáTour of Poland: SchumacherZuri Metzgete: Samuel Sánchez, Spa, Euskaltel-EuskadiParis-Tours: Fréderic Guesdon, Fra, Francaise des JeuxGiro di Lombardia: Paolo Bettini, Ita, Quick Step-InnergeticOverall: Valverde Team: Team CSC* Landis facing two-year racing ban and the loss of his Tour victory for failing a doping test.

Basso, Riis meeting this week
Giro d’Italia champion Ivan Basso is set to have a sit down with Team CSC boss Bjarne Riis this week to discuss his future with the team.

Basso - cleared by Italian authorities late last week of any possible charges for lack of a evidence for alleged links to the Operación Puerto doping investigation – returned to competition for the first time since winning the Giro in Sunday’s Castano Primo race in Italy.

“My future will be discussed [Monday] when I meet with Riis in Lugano,” Basso told Tutto Bici. “I cannot say right now whether I will race with a foreign team or an Italian one, only that I will return to win again.”

Basso is still under contract with Team CSC through the 2008 season, but relations were strained when Basso’s name was linked to the Puerto investigation that led to his expulsion from the 2006 Tour de France. Despite being one of the overall favorites for victory, Basso was among nine riders from four teams not allowed to start the 2006 Tour.

Basso has maintained his innocence and Italian officials ruled last week that they wouldn’t open a disciplinary hearing that could have resulted in a two-year ban due to a lack of concrete evidence that Basso might have worked with controversial Spanish doctor Eufemiano Fuentes. The case could be re-opened if new evidence comes forward.

Basso and Riis decided a return to Saturday’s Giro di Lombardia would too rushed, but Basso did compete in Sunday’s circuit race.

Legeay calls for DNA testing
Roger Legeay, head of the ProTour team’s organization, called for DNA testing on riders implicated in the Operación Puerto investigation before they’re allowed to return to competition.

Legeay’s comments came on the heels of a decision by Italian authorities last week to not open a disciplinary hearing against Italian rider Ivan Basso, who was among more than 50 riders implicated in the Spanish investigation.

“There were 200 bags of blood confiscated in the Puerto investigation and that’s material proof,” Legeay, the French sports director of Credit Agricole, told AFP. “It should be known whether an implicated rider has blood there.”

Spanish police found nearly 200 bags of frozen blood and plasma in raids last May that were marked with a series of codes and nicknames. Riders have resisted voluntarily providing DNA samples while UCI officials said they cannot force the issue.

Saunier Duval signs Belohvosciks
Although Saunier Duval-Prodir is still waiting to finalize a deal with Basque climbing ace Iban Mayo, the team continues to bolster its roster for the 2007 season. The Spanish team has signed Raivis Belohvosciks for two years. The Latvian raced this season with Universal Caffé and won Sunday’s Herbiers time trial race in France. With the move to Saunier Duval, he will rejoin Pietro Algeri, who was his sport director previously at Lampre.