Team Sky Procycling's and Great Britain's Bradley Wiggins held on to win the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine Libere race in the Alps on Sunday as Joaquim Rodriguez (Team Katusha) took the seventh and final stage.

The victory by the 31-year-old Wiggins, a former track specialist and Olympic champion, showed his strong form in the mountains less than three weeks before the July 2 start of the Tour de France 2011.

"I think I got the biggest win of my pro career," Wiggins said after being celebrated on the prodium and continued "This year, all the races I've taken part in, it was for the win. It won't be the case at the Tour de France. Winning the Tour de France against Andy Schleck and (Alberto) Contador is a big call. The top 10 has always been the goal, but now with the confidence I got at the Dauphine, the top six is the goal."

Wiggins finished with an overall time of 26:40:51. Team BMC Racing's former World Champion Cadel Evans of Australia was second, 1:26 behind, while Alexandre Vinokourov of Kazakhstan and Team Astana was another 23 seconds back in third.

Rodriguez, a 32-year-old Spaniard who also won Saturday's stage, bolted out of the front pack within the last mile of the 73-mile ride from Pontcharra to the uphill finish at La Toussuire, finishing in 3 hours, 24 minutes, 30 seconds.

Photo copyright Fotoreporter Sirotti.

Thibault Pinot of France was second and Dutch rider Robert Gesink was third for the stage -- each seven seconds behind.

Rodriguez became the first cyclist to win two consecutive stages at the race since Tyler Hamilton in 2000 and finished fifth overall. The Spaniard said he had worked out his tactics to attack on the final climb well ahead of time.