Andrea Pasqualon wins 2017 Coppa Sabatini

Andrea Pasqualon (Wanty-Groupe Gobert) claimed the biggest win of his career when he sprinted to victory in the Coppa Sabatini, beating Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain-Merida) into second place in the uphill group sprint in Peccioli.

The result was a reverse of the outcome of the 2016 edition of the race, when Colbrelli pipped Pasqualon to the win on the same finale in Tuscany. Colbrelli was chasing his third Coppa Sabatini win in four years, and he opened his sprint from distance, but was overhauled by Pasqualon in the closing metres.

Colbrelli appealed the result immediately after the stage, claiming that Pasqualon had deviated from his line, but the commissaires promptly confirmed that that the Wanty-Groupe Gobert man was the winner.

Francesco Gavazzi (Androni-Sidermec) took third place in the bunch finish, ahead of Diego Ulissi (UAE-Team Emirates) and Eduard Prades (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA).

Pasqualon had racked up a series of placings at the Coppa Sabatini in recent years and was determined to win this year, telling his teammates before the race that he would open up the sprint after the last sweeping corner.

"I know the finish after being beaten in recent years and this time I had the courage to go for it. I didn't have that courage in the pat but this year I'm a lot stronger and more confident in what I can do in the finale of races. Changing teams and riding the Tour de France has made a huge difference. I can feel I'm stronger and have more endurance," Pasqualon said.

"Colbrelli led out the sprint but I came off his wheel quickly so that I could chose my own line. That's what I did. He claimed I squeezed him against the barriers but I don't think I did anything wrong. My chain jumped with 150m to go and I moved a bit but I didn't change my line to stop him coming through. I think I deserved this win."

Pasqualon revealed he had decided to put off signing a new contract until after the races in Tuscany because he was convinced he get a result. He revealed he has several offers but is "90 per cent" sure to stay at Wanty-Groupe Gobert in 2018.

The race was animated by an early break featuring Eugert Zhupa (Wilier-Selle Italia), Alessandro Tonelli (Bardiani-CSF), Andrea Vendrame (Androni), Patrick Gamper (Tirol Cycling), Daniel Turek (Israel Cycling Academy), Oscar Pelegri (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) and Hideto Nakane (Nippo-Vini Fantini).

The seven escapees built a maximum lead just shy of six minutes before UAE-Team Emirates and Bahrain-Merida began to police affairs at the head of the peloton around the midway point.

By the time the break reached the six laps of the 12-kilometre finishing circuit around Peccioli, the gap was down just over two minutes, though attempts from counter-attackers Jacopo Mosca (Wilier-Selle Italia) and Francesco Manuel Bongiorno (Sangemini–MG.K Vis) to bridge across on the finishing circuit in Peccioli proved unsuccessful.

With two laps of the finishing circuit left, the break's buffer had been thinned down to just over a minute, and the move would splinter by the final lap, where only Vendrame and Tonelli remained just ahead of the closing peloton.

Vendrame and Tonelli were eventually swept up with seven kilometres to go, as Bahrain-Merida continued their forcing on behalf of Colbrelli, though Team Sky and Wanty-Groupe Gobert were increasingly prominent on the approach to final haul towards Peccioli, with Elia Viviani and Pasqualon in mind.

In the keenly-contested finishing sprint, it was Pasqualon who emerged victorious to claim his first win of 2017 and the biggest victory of a career that began in 2011 in the colours of Colnago-CSF.

The 29-year-old later spent three seasons at Continental level before stepping up again this season with Wanty-Groupe Gobert. Pasqualon was among the nine race debutants Wanty named for the Tour de France, reaching Paris in 137th overall.

Pasqualon's victory was Wanty-Groupe Gobert's third in two days in Tuscany after his teammate Guillaume Martin won stage 2 and the final overall title at the Giro della Toscana in Volterra on Wednesday.

Full Results

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#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Andrea Pasqualon (Ita) Wanty - Groupe Gobert4:44:04
2Sonny Colbrelli (Ita) Bahrain-MeridaRow 1 - Cell 2
3Francesco Gavazzi (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 2 - Cell 2
4Diego Ulissi (Ita) UAE Team EmiratesRow 3 - Cell 2
5Eduard Prades (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 4 - Cell 2
6Elia Viviani (Ita) Team SkyRow 5 - Cell 2
7Guillaume Martin (Fra) Wanty - Groupe GobertRow 6 - Cell 2
8Marco Canola (Ita) Nippo - Vini FantiniRow 7 - Cell 2
9Nicola Gaffurini (Ita) Sangemini - Mg. K VisRow 8 - Cell 2
10Mattia Cattaneo (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 9 - Cell 2
11Matteo Busato (Ita) Wilier TriestinaRow 10 - Cell 2
12Guillaume Boivin (Can) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 11 - Cell 2
13Pier Paolo De Negri (Ita) Nippo - Vini FantiniRow 12 - Cell 2
14Armindo Fonseca (Fra) Team Fortuneo - OscaroRow 13 - Cell 2
15Sebastian Schönberger (Aut) Tirol Cycling TeamRow 14 - Cell 2
16Maxime Bouet (Fra) Team Fortuneo - Oscaro0:00:10
17Ettore Carlini (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 16 - Cell 2
18Giovanni Visconti (Ita) Bahrain-MeridaRow 17 - Cell 2
19Simone Velasco (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 18 - Cell 2
20Paolo Totò (Ita) Sangemini - Mg. K Vis0:00:12
21Enrico Gasparotto (Ita) Bahrain-MeridaRow 20 - Cell 2
22Enrico Barbin (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 21 - Cell 2
23Nikolay Trusov (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo0:00:16
24Federico Canuti (Ita) D'Amico Utensilnord0:00:18
25Egan Bernal (Col) Androni GiocattoliRow 24 - Cell 2
26Matthias Krizek (Aut) Tirol Cycling TeamRow 25 - Cell 2
27Dylan Page (Swi) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 26 - Cell 2
28Giacomo Berlato (Ita) Nippo - Vini FantiniRow 27 - Cell 2
29Darwin Atapuma (Col) UAE Team Emirates0:00:25
30Iuri Filosi (Ita) Nippo - Vini Fantini0:00:28
31Daniel Teklehaimanot (Eri) Dimension DataRow 30 - Cell 2
32Sergey Lagutin (Rus) Gazprom – RusveloRow 31 - Cell 2
33Cristian Rodriguez (Spa) Wilier TriestinaRow 32 - Cell 2
34Jonathan Lastra (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 33 - Cell 2
35Maximilian Kuen (Aut) Tirol Cycling TeamRow 34 - Cell 2
36Yonder Godoy (Ven) Wilier Triestina0:00:32
37Vincenzo Albanese (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 36 - Cell 2
38Metkel Eyob (Eri) Dimension DataRow 37 - Cell 2
39Markus Wildauer (Aut) Tirol Cycling TeamRow 38 - Cell 2
40Michele Scartezzini (Ita) Sangemini - Mg. K Vis0:00:38
41Frederik Backaert (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert0:00:40
42Marco Frapporti (Ita) Androni Giocattoli0:00:43
43Fausto Masnada (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 42 - Cell 2
44Lukasz Wisniowski (Pol) Team Sky0:00:51
45Daniel Turek (Cze) Israel Cycling Academy0:00:55
46Daniel Martinez (Col) Wilier Triestina0:00:56
47Grega Bole (Slo) Bahrain-Merida0:00:58
48Niccolo' Salvietti (Ita) Sangemini - Mg. K Vis0:01:08
49Dario Puccioni (Ita) Sangemini - Mg. K VisRow 48 - Cell 2
50Nicolas Sessler (Bra) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 49 - Cell 2
51Enrico Salvador (Ita) Tirol Cycling TeamRow 50 - Cell 2
52Eduardo Sepulveda (Arg) Team Fortuneo - Oscaro0:01:11
53Damiano Cunego (Ita) Nippo - Vini Fantini0:01:12
54Ivan Santaromita (Ita) Nippo - Vini FantiniRow 53 - Cell 2
55Mattia Frapporti (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 54 - Cell 2
56Anthony Delaplace (Fra) Team Fortuneo - OscaroRow 55 - Cell 2
57Umberto Orsini (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 56 - Cell 2
58Fabricio Ferrari (Uru) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 57 - Cell 2
59Christopher Butler (USA) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 58 - Cell 2
60Alessandro Tonelli (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 59 - Cell 2
61Davide Ballerini (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 60 - Cell 2
62Manuel Belletti (Ita) Wilier TriestinaRow 61 - Cell 2
63Xandro Meurisse (Bel) Wanty - Groupe GobertRow 62 - Cell 2
64Simone Antonini (Ita) Wanty - Groupe GobertRow 63 - Cell 2
65Fabien Doubey (Fra) Wanty - Groupe GobertRow 64 - Cell 2
66Brice Feillu (Fra) Team Fortuneo - OscaroRow 65 - Cell 2
67Marco Minnaard (Ned) Wanty - Groupe GobertRow 66 - Cell 2
68Aleksandr Riabushenko (Blr) UAE Team EmiratesRow 67 - Cell 2
69Francesco Manuel Bongiorno (Ita) Sangemini - Mg. K VisRow 68 - Cell 2
70Igor Boev (Rus) Gazprom – RusveloRow 69 - Cell 2
71Kristian Sbaragli (Ita) Dimension DataRow 70 - Cell 2
72Edoardo Zardini (Ita) Bardiani CSF0:01:32
73Kristijan Durasek (Cro) UAE Team Emirates0:01:35
74Mekseb Debesay (Eri) Dimension Data0:01:38
75Michele Gazzara (Ita) Sangemini - Mg. K Vis0:01:40
76Arnaud Gerard (Fra) Team Fortuneo - Oscaro0:01:42
77Alexander Porsev (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo0:01:45
78Florian Vachon (Fra) Team Fortuneo - Oscaro0:01:50
79Filippo Fortin (Ita) Tirol Cycling TeamRow 78 - Cell 2
80Patrick Gamper (Aut) Tirol Cycling TeamRow 79 - Cell 2
81Simone Bernardini (Ita) Sangemini - Mg. K Vis0:01:56
82Kenny Elissonde (Fra) Team Sky0:02:03
83Diego Rosa (Ita) Team SkyRow 82 - Cell 2
84Jacopo Mosca (Ita) Wilier TriestinaRow 83 - Cell 2
85Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Bahrain-MeridaRow 84 - Cell 2
86Danilo Napolitano (Ita) Wanty - Groupe Gobert0:02:31
87Antonio Nibali (Ita) Bahrain-Merida0:02:38
88Mark Cavendish (GBr) Dimension DataRow 87 - Cell 2
89Tao Geoghegan Hart (GBr) Team Sky0:02:52
90Jonathan Dibben (GBr) Team SkyRow 89 - Cell 2
91Dan Craven (Nam) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 90 - Cell 2
92Mihkel Räim (Est) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 91 - Cell 2
93Andrea Vendrame (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 92 - Cell 2
94Marino Kobayashi (Jpn) Nippo - Vini FantiniRow 93 - Cell 2
95Manuele Mori (Ita) UAE Team Emirates0:03:14
96Simone Andreetta (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 95 - Cell 2
97Simone Sterbini (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 96 - Cell 2
98Angelo Raffaele (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 97 - Cell 2
99Ian Boswell (USA) Team Sky0:03:30
100José Manuel Díaz (Spa) Israel Cycling Academy0:04:16
101Josu Zabala (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 100 - Cell 2
102Oscar Pelegri Ferrandis (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 101 - Cell 2
103Anton Vorobyev (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo0:04:31
104Johann Van Zyl (RSA) Dimension DataRow 103 - Cell 2
105Dmitriy Kozontchuk (Rus) Gazprom – RusveloRow 104 - Cell 2
106Guy Sagiv (Isr) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 105 - Cell 2
107Sergey Nikolaev (Rus) Gazprom – RusveloRow 106 - Cell 2
108Hideto Nakane (Jpn) Nippo - Vini Fantini0:04:41
DNFManuele Boaro (Ita) Bahrain-MeridaRow 108 - Cell 2
DNFAndrea Garosio (Ita) Bahrain-MeridaRow 109 - Cell 2
DNFJohann Van Zyl (RSA) Dimension DataRow 110 - Cell 2
DNFNicolas Dougall (RSA) Dimension DataRow 111 - Cell 2
DNFBernhard Eisel (Aut) Dimension DataRow 112 - Cell 2
DNFMatteo Bono (Ita) UAE Team EmiratesRow 113 - Cell 2
DNFFilippo Ganna (Ita) UAE Team EmiratesRow 114 - Cell 2
DNFManuele Mori (Ita) UAE Team EmiratesRow 115 - Cell 2
DNFFederico Zurlo (Ita) UAE Team EmiratesRow 116 - Cell 2
DNFIlia Koshevoy (Blr) Wilier TriestinaRow 117 - Cell 2
DNFEugert Zhupa (Alb) Wilier TriestinaRow 118 - Cell 2
DNFEvgeny Shalunov (Rus) Gazprom – RusveloRow 119 - Cell 2
DNFDanilo Celano (Ita) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 120 - Cell 2
DNFGuy Niv (Isr) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 121 - Cell 2
DNFPietro Di Genova (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 122 - Cell 2
DNFFrancesco Petrini (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 123 - Cell 2
DNFAngelo Vitiello (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 124 - Cell 2

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