Spanish sports minister Jaime Lissavetzky says the UCI's appeal of Team Saxo Bank-SunGard's Alberto Contador's doping ban is "shaky."

UCI president Pat McQuaid has said the governing body appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport because of suspicions that Spanish cycling officials were put under political pressure to overturn the triple Tour de France champion's proposed one-year suspension.

But Lissavetzky says "the argument seems a little shaky."

Contador was cleared of a positive clenbuterol test after arguing the result was because of contaminated beef. Contador tested positive en route to his third Tour de France victory last year.

Download Roadcycling.com's new cycling iPhone app online at http://itunes.apple.com/app/roadcycling-cycling-app/id395146493

Sign up for your own cycling training diary here on Roadcycling.com at http://www.roadcycling.com/diary . Sign up for the paid diary version to gain easy access to your cycling training diary from our Roadcycling iPhone app and from our mobile site Roadcycling.mobi too.