Colbrelli wins Coppa Sabatini

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Sonny Colbrelli (Bardiani-CSF) continued his late-season run of form with victory in the GP Peccioli-Coppa Sabatini, where he saw off Mauro Finetto (Neri Sottoli) and Franco Pellizotti (Androni-Venezuela) in the uphill sprint finish.

In spite of a flurry of attacks on the final uphill haul to the line, nobody could break the deadlock in the finale and Colbrelli duly claimed an emphatic victory in the sprint, overhauling Finetto to take the win. Pellizzoti managed to hold off the veteran Davide Rebellin (CCC Polsat) for third, while Enrico Battaglin (Bardiani-CSF) took fifth.

The victory was Colbrelli’s third in the past month, following the Memorial Pantani and the GP Industria & Commercio di Prato. The 24-year-old was also Italy’s highest finisher (13th) at the Ponferrada world championships and raced in the Tour of Almaty in Kazakhstan last weekend.

The opening section of Thursday’s race was animated by a sizeable break featuring Davide Formolo (Cannondale), and when they were reeled in, a move comprising Giuseppe Fonzi (Neri Sottoli), Jacques Janse Van Rensburg (MTN-Qhubeka) and Pablo Valencia (Colombia).

With Bardiani-CSF leading the peloton, however, their lead never stretched far beyond 2:30 and one by one, the trio was picked off, with Valencia the final survivor out front. Kristijan Durasek (Lampre-Merida) was among the riders who attempting to forge clear on the finishing circuit but his move failed to gain traction, and instead the honours were decided in the final kilometre, where Colbrelli delivered his telling blow.

Results