Filippo Fiorelli (Visma-Lease a Bike) scored the second victory of his career at Tro-Bro Léon, the Italian coming out on top after making a solo move with just under 3km to go of the 202km part-gravel race.
The 31-year-old was making his debut at the Breton Classic as part of a strong Visma lineup, which also included Axel Zingle and Per Strand Hagenes. The trio all made the select lead group in the latter stages of the race, with the riders launching several moves in the closing laps around Lannilis.
Eventually, it was Fiorelli's attack which made the difference. He launched his move heading into the last of the 29 ribin gravel sectors on the route, going clear of the group of 11 riders which led the race at that point.
Nobody in the move, which included Fred Wright (Pinarello-Q36.5) and Benoît Cosnefroy (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), had an answer to his attack, and so he soloed home to victory.
Behind him, Breton racer Alexis Renard (Cofidis) won the sprint for second place – and the prize of a piglet statuette for best home rider – ahead of Lewis Askey (NSN), who rounded out the podium in third.
"Winning today feels really good because yesterday the directeur sportif who gave me my big break [Marcello Massini, who worked as an under-23 director in Tuscany for decades – Ed.] passed away. He was one of the best I’ve ever had, and I wanted to show him, who believed in me right from the start, that he was right. This victory is for him,” Fiorelli said, according to Tuttobiciweb.
“We’d planned to try and attack in the final kilometres. I knew Axel Zingle was with me and could lead out the sprint, which allowed me to play my cards right, and it went well.
"Visma? Racing with this team is really important because it’s one of the best in the world; you have greater responsibility on your shoulders, but everything becomes easier.”
Attacks flew, and breaks formed and reformed over the 202.1km race with a succession of 29 ribinoù, the unpaved farm tracks of varying degrees of maintenance, which can include double-track, well-groomed gravel, climbs, and descents.
After 30 kilometres, Valentin Ferron (Cofidis), Joel Nicolau (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA), Nil Gimeno (Kern Pharma), Sergio Romeo (Kern Pharma) and Daniel Cavia (Burgo Burpellet BH) managed to escape and built a gap of 2:45, but the final rider was reeled back in 100 kilometres later.
A counterattack from Alexys Brunel (TotalEnergies), soon joined by Jenthe Biermans (Cofidis), was the next move to get a small gap. But the duo was caught at the entrance to the Keradraon ribin.
Visma and Decathlon then pushed the pace at the front, forcing splits, until five riders were able to escape with 28 kilometres to go. Joining Askey, Wright and Cosnefroy, at the front were Hagenes and Paul Lapeira (Decathlon CMA CGM). The quintet worked well together, but a massive headwind slowed their progress as Uno-X Mobility and Groupama-FDJ United led the chase.
Fiorelli and Pierre Gautherat (Decathlon CMA CGM) were among a handful of riders who bridged the 10-second gap inside of eight kilometres, before Fiorelli broke away solo, barely holding on to his lead all the way to the uphill finish as the chasers bore down hard behind him.
Results
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