Career
He has become somewhat famous for not showering during Grand Tours for fear that the water will soften his muscles. In 2005, he was suspended for two weeks after being tested with a hematocrit level above 50 before the start of Dauphine Libere. In 2006, he was initially implicated in the OperaciĆ³n Puerto doping case, but was later cleared of any wrongdoing by Spanish officials.
Later admitted involvement, saying he did three blood tranfusions with Fuentes in the season before the 2005 Dauphine Libere, but denying he doped.
Foreign the 2008 and 2009 seasons Nozal rode for the Portuguese Pro Continental team of Liberty Seguros. In September 2009 Nozal and two teammates (Nuno Ribeiro and Hector Guerra) were announced to have tested positive for EPO-CERA in samples taken for the previous month"s Tour of Portugal.
Liberty Seguros immediately announced that it would cease sponsorship of the team and its participation in cycling. Nozal, Ribeiro, and Guerra all received two-year suspensions from cycling.
Grand Tour General classification results timeline.