Moreno Moser solos to Trofeo Laigueglia victory

Moreno Moser claimed victory at Trofeo Laigueglia after attacking near the summit of the final climb of Colla Micheri and soloing to the finish. The Astana rider, who was competing in the colours of the Italian national team, extended his advantage on the descent to run out a convincing win.

It was Moser's second victory in the race, which is the first on the Italian calendar, and his first win of any description since he landed a stage of the 2015 Tour of Austria.

Moser was part of an 18-rider selection that fought it out for the victory on the finishing circuit around Laigueglia, having earlier made a fine solo effort to chase back up to the front group. The Italian chose his moment well in the finale, accelerating 100 metres from the summit of the climb through the hilltop village of Colla Micheri to open a decisive gap.

Paolo Totò (Sangemini) led home the chasing group to take second place, while Matteo Busato (Wilier Triestina) claimed the third step of the podium.

How it unfolded

The early break forged clear inside the opening five kilometres, with Julien El Fares (Delko Marseille Provence KTM) slipping away in the company of Auden Brekk Flotten (Team Virtu Cycling) and Francesco Bettini (D'Amico).

The trio were handed plenty of leeway by a slumbering gruppo in the opening hour of racing, and they quickly stacked up an advantage of 9:15 by the 42km mark, at which point Androni Giocattoli began to marshal the pursuit in the peloton.

By the time the escapees reached the Capo Berta after a little over 100km, their efforts were beginning to take a toll. A flagging Bettini sat up from the break, and their advantage over the bunch had been cut back to within seven minutes. By the time the break hit the Testico 20 kilometres later, their advantage was down to 4:30, at which point El Fares decided to try his luck alone.

The rugged terrain was also beginning to provoke movement in the main peloton, however, with Androni Giocattoli and AG2R La Mondiale particularly active. They had five riders apiece in the 13-man selection that formed after the Testico, though the group swelled to shortly afterwards as others – Moser included – scrambled their way across outside of Alassio, where El Fares' lone effort fizzled out.

There were eighteen riders still in contention for the win by the time the front group hit the four laps of the finishing circuit around Laigueglia, including Moser, Ben Hermans (Israel Cycling Academy), Francesco Gavazzi, Fausto Masnada, Marco Frapporti (Androni Giocattoli), Silvan Dillier, Mikael Cherel, Clement Chevrier (AG2R La Mondiale) and Simone Andreetta (Bardiani-CSF).

Dillier was among the chief aggressors, and he briefly succeeded in breaking clear alone on the first lap, but he was soon brought to heel. On the final ascent of Colla Micheri, Moser seized his opportunity and punched his way clear near the summit, quickly establishing a gap.

Gavazzi, Busato, Nicola Bagioli (Nippo-Vini Fantini), Romain Combaud (Delko-Marseille Provence KTM) and Roland Thalmann (Team Vorarlberg) were prominent in pursuit of Moser, but the Italian was not to be denied victory.

As a neo-professional in 2012, Moser's Trofeo Laigueglia victory was the first calling card for a remarkable debut season that saw him win the Tour de Pologne and mark himself out as Italian cycling's coming man. After a promising start to 2013, and despite occasional flashes in the intervening period, Moser has never scaled such heights again, but at 27 years of age, he will hope that this triumph is an omen for better things to come in 2018.

Full Results

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#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Moreno Moser (Ita) Astana Pro Team5:10:50
2Paolo Totò (Ita) Sangemini-Mg. K Vis-Vega0:00:43
3Matteo Busato (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle ItaliaRow 2 - Cell 2
4Nicola Bagioli (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa OviniRow 3 - Cell 2
5Francesco Gavazzi (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-SidermecRow 4 - Cell 2
6Kasper Asgreen (Den) Team Virtu CyclingRow 5 - Cell 2
7Romain Combaud (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 6 - Cell 2
8Roland Thalmann (Swi) Team Vorarlberg SanticRow 7 - Cell 2
9Ben Hermans (Bel) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 8 - Cell 2
10Fausto Masnada (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec0:00:48
11Quentin Jauregui (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:00:58
12Mauro Finetto (Ita) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:01:12
13Gianluca Brambilla (Ita) Trek-Segafredo0:02:21
14Silvan Dillier (Swi) AG2R La Mondiale0:02:37
15Simone Andreetta (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 14 - Cell 2
16Mikael Cherel (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 15 - Cell 2
17Hubert Dupont (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 16 - Cell 2
18Alexander Kamp (Den) Team Virtu Cycling0:03:45
19Sean De Bie (Bel) Veranda's Willems CrelanRow 18 - Cell 2
20Marco Frapporti (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-SidermecRow 19 - Cell 2
21Thomas Degand (Bel) Wanty-Groupe GobertRow 20 - Cell 2
22Andrea Pasqualon (Ita) Wanty-Groupe GobertRow 21 - Cell 2
23Evaldas Siskevicius (Ltu) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 22 - Cell 2
24Aleksandr Vlasov (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 23 - Cell 2
25Lorenzo Rota (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 24 - Cell 2
26Anthony Delaplace (Fra) Fortuneo-OscaroRow 25 - Cell 2
27Ivan Santaromita (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa OviniRow 26 - Cell 2
28Stijn Devolder (Bel) Veranda's Willems CrelanRow 27 - Cell 2
29Clement Chevrier (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 28 - Cell 2
30Jacopo Mosca (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia0:04:40
31Luca Wackermann (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 30 - Cell 2
32Frantisek Sisr (Cze) CCC Sprandi PolkowiceRow 31 - Cell 2
33Simone Ponzi (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa OviniRow 32 - Cell 2
34Enrico Salvador (Ita) Biesse Carrera GavardoRow 33 - Cell 2
35Kristian Sbaragli (Ita) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 34 - Cell 2
36Kamil Malecki (Pol) CCC Sprandi PolkowiceRow 35 - Cell 2
37Lawrence Warbasse (USA) Aqua Blue SportRow 36 - Cell 2
38Alex Turrin (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle ItaliaRow 37 - Cell 2
39Edoardo Zardini (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia0:04:52
40Mikkel Frølich Honoré (Den) Team Virtu Cycling0:06:55
41Andrea Vendrame (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec0:08:32
42Rodolfo Torres (Col) Androni Giocattoli-SidermecRow 41 - Cell 2
DNFJulien Duval (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 42 - Cell 2
DNFNico Denz (Ger) AG2R La MondialeRow 43 - Cell 2
DNFVincenzo Albanese (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 44 - Cell 2
DNFEnrico Barbin (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 45 - Cell 2
DNFManuel Senni (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 46 - Cell 2
DNFUmberto Orsini (Ita) Bardiani CSFRow 47 - Cell 2
DNFMattia Cattaneo (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-SidermecRow 48 - Cell 2
DNFDavide Ballerini (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-SidermecRow 49 - Cell 2
DNFIlia Koshevoy (Blr) Wilier Triestina-Selle ItaliaRow 50 - Cell 2
DNFGiuseppe Fonzi (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle ItaliaRow 51 - Cell 2
DNFSimone Velasco (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle ItaliaRow 52 - Cell 2
DNFMarco Canola (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa OviniRow 53 - Cell 2
DNFJoan Bou Company (Spa) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa OviniRow 54 - Cell 2
DNFMarco Tizza (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa OviniRow 55 - Cell 2
DNFFilippo Zaccanti (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa OviniRow 56 - Cell 2
DNFNiccolo Bonifazio (Ita) Bahrain-MeridaRow 57 - Cell 2
DNFMattia Bais (Ita) ItalyRow 58 - Cell 2
DNFGiacomo Garavagli (Ita) ItalyRow 59 - Cell 2
DNFCezary Grodkicki (Ita) ItalyRow 60 - Cell 2
DNFFederico Burchio (Ita) ItalyRow 61 - Cell 2
DNFAwet Andemeskel (Eri) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 62 - Cell 2
DNFOmer Goldshtein (Isr) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 63 - Cell 2
DNFGuy Niv (Isr) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 64 - Cell 2
DNFGuy Sagiv (Isr) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 65 - Cell 2
DNFDaniel Turek (Cze) Israel Cycling AcademyRow 66 - Cell 2
DNFFranck Bonnamour (Fra) Fortuneo-OscaroRow 67 - Cell 2
DNFArmindo Fonseca (Fra) Fortuneo-OscaroRow 68 - Cell 2
DNFRomain Le Roux (Fra) Fortuneo-OscaroRow 69 - Cell 2
DNFBrice Feillu (Fra) Fortuneo-OscaroRow 70 - Cell 2
DNFLaurent Pichon (Fra) Fortuneo-OscaroRow 71 - Cell 2
DNFEdward Dunbar (Irl) Aqua Blue SportRow 72 - Cell 2
DNFLasse Norman Hansen (Den) Aqua Blue SportRow 73 - Cell 2
DNFPeter Koning (Ned) Aqua Blue SportRow 74 - Cell 2
DNFCalvin Watson (Aus) Aqua Blue SportRow 75 - Cell 2
DNFPrzemyslaw Kasperkiewicz (Pol) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 76 - Cell 2
DNFJulien El Fares (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 77 - Cell 2
DNFIuri Filosi (Ita) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 78 - Cell 2
DNFJulien Trarieux (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 79 - Cell 2
DNFIgor Boev (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 80 - Cell 2
DNFSergey Lagutin (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 81 - Cell 2
DNFSergey Firsanov (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 82 - Cell 2
DNFIvan Rovny (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 83 - Cell 2
DNFArtem Nych (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 84 - Cell 2
DNFNikolay Trusov (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 85 - Cell 2
DNFAlan Banaszek (Pol) CCC Sprandi PolkowiceRow 86 - Cell 2
DNFPiotr Brozyna (Pol) CCC Sprandi PolkowiceRow 87 - Cell 2
DNFSzymon Sajnok (Pol) CCC Sprandi PolkowiceRow 88 - Cell 2
DNFPatryk Stosz (Pol) CCC Sprandi PolkowiceRow 89 - Cell 2
DNFLukas Spengler (Swi) WB Aqua Protect VeranclassicRow 90 - Cell 2
DNFGregory Habeaux (Bel) WB Aqua Protect VeranclassicRow 91 - Cell 2
DNFChristophe Masson (Fra) WB Aqua Protect VeranclassicRow 92 - Cell 2
DNFFranklin Six (Bel) WB Aqua Protect VeranclassicRow 93 - Cell 2
DNFJulien Stassen (Bel) WB Aqua Protect VeranclassicRow 94 - Cell 2
DNFAntoine Warnier (Bel) WB Aqua Protect VeranclassicRow 95 - Cell 2
DNFMathias De Witte (Bel) Veranda's Willems CrelanRow 96 - Cell 2
DNFHuub Duijn (Ned) Veranda's Willems CrelanRow 97 - Cell 2
DNFElias Van Breussegem (Bel) Veranda's Willems CrelanRow 98 - Cell 2
DNFFrederik Backaert (Bel) Wanty-Groupe GobertRow 99 - Cell 2
DNFGuillaume Martin (Fra) Wanty-Groupe GobertRow 100 - Cell 2
DNFKevin Van Melsen (Bel) Wanty-Groupe GobertRow 101 - Cell 2
DNFLuca Colnaghi (Ita) Sangemini-Mg. K Vis-VegaRow 102 - Cell 2
DNFNicola Gaffurini (Ita) Sangemini-Mg. K Vis-VegaRow 103 - Cell 2
DNFMichele Gazzara (Ita) Sangemini-Mg. K Vis-VegaRow 104 - Cell 2
DNFDario Puccioni (Ita) Sangemini-Mg. K Vis-VegaRow 105 - Cell 2
DNFNiccolo' Salvietti (Ita) Sangemini-Mg. K Vis-VegaRow 106 - Cell 2
DNFMatteo Draperi (Ita) Sangemini-Mg. K Vis-VegaRow 107 - Cell 2
DNFAlberto Amici (Ita) Biesse Carrera GavardoRow 108 - Cell 2
DNFLorenzo Delcó (Swi) Biesse Carrera GavardoRow 109 - Cell 2
DNFEnrico Logica (Ita) Biesse Carrera GavardoRow 110 - Cell 2
DNFMichel Piccot (Ita) Biesse Carrera GavardoRow 111 - Cell 2
DNFSimone Ravanelli (Ita) Biesse Carrera GavardoRow 112 - Cell 2
DNFAndrea Zanardini (Ita) Biesse Carrera GavardoRow 113 - Cell 2
DNFFrancesco Bettini (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 114 - Cell 2
DNFEmanuele Di Giovanni (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 115 - Cell 2
DNFEttore Carlini (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 116 - Cell 2
DNFAndrea Garosio (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 117 - Cell 2
DNFEmanuele Onesti (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 118 - Cell 2
DNFAngelo Vitiello (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 119 - Cell 2
DNFAngelo Raffaele (Ita) D'Amico UtensilnordRow 120 - Cell 2
DNFBesmir Banushi (Alb) Amore & Vita-ProdirRow 121 - Cell 2
DNFDavide Gabburo (Ita) Amore & Vita-ProdirRow 122 - Cell 2
DNFMirko Trosino (Ita) Amore & Vita-ProdirRow 123 - Cell 2
DNFKristian Javier Yustre Rodriguez (Col) Amore & Vita-ProdirRow 124 - Cell 2
DNFAntonio Zullo (Ita) Amore & Vita-ProdirRow 125 - Cell 2
DNFMatteo Badilatti (Swi) Team Vorarlberg SanticRow 126 - Cell 2
DNFManuel Bosch (Aut) Team Vorarlberg SanticRow 127 - Cell 2
DNFPatrick Jäger (Aut) Team Vorarlberg SanticRow 128 - Cell 2
DNFLukas Meiler (Ger) Team Vorarlberg SanticRow 129 - Cell 2
DNFJannik Steimle (Ger) Team Vorarlberg SanticRow 130 - Cell 2
DNFAudun Brekke Fløtten (Nor) Team Virtu CyclingRow 131 - Cell 2
DNFAsbjørn Kragh Andersen (Den) Team Virtu CyclingRow 132 - Cell 2
DNFJesper Schultz (Den) Team Virtu CyclingRow 133 - Cell 2
DNFTorkil Veyhe (Den) Team Virtu CyclingRow 134 - Cell 2
DNFGiacomo Berlato (Ita) Mstina FocusRow 135 - Cell 2
DNFRaul-Antonio Sinza (Rom) Mstina FocusRow 136 - Cell 2
DNFEmil Dima (Rom) Mstina FocusRow 137 - Cell 2
DNFVlad-Nicolae Dobre (Rom) Mstina FocusRow 138 - Cell 2
DNFMattia Marcelli (Ita) Mstina FocusRow 139 - Cell 2
DNFRiccardo Stacchiotti (Ita) Mstina FocusRow 140 - Cell 2
DNSDavide Orrico (Ita) Team Vorarlberg SanticRow 141 - Cell 2

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