Simoni says moto assisted Garzelli in win

By Jean-François Quénet

After the stage finish in Bergamo, which was held on the same streets as the Tour of Lombardy until the last classic of the season moved to Como two years ago, Gilberto Simoni argued with the motorbike driver of the cameraman of Italian TV station RAI who supposedly helped Stefano Garzelli jump across and pass him in the final metres. "You have made him win!" Simoni yelled.

Garzelli didn't share this opinion. "I don't think the motorbike has given me any advantage," he said. "I was 50 metres behind the moto before the last curve. The motorbike just went slower than me out of that curve. It's because of the effort I put there that I was able to rejoin Simoni."