Moreno wins Gran Piemonte

Dani Moreno (Katusha) scored a fine victory at Gran Piemonte, as he came home ahead of Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) and teammate Luca Paolini in a small group finish in Novi Ligure.

The Spaniard slipped clear of the decisive 14-man break inside the final kilometre with the aid of the canny Paolini. Moreno had Paolini locked on his wheel on the last descent of the race, and when the Italian cleverly allowed a gap to develop, he was able to open a telling advantage over the group behind.

In spite of Vincenzo Nibali’s (Liquigas-Cannondale) late attempt to shut down the move, Moreno had enough in hand to hold on for the win, while a frustrated Van Avermaet took the sprint for second just behind.

“Paolini left a gap to Moreno on the last decent to the finish," Van Avermaet explained. "Nibali tried to close the gap and with 400 metres to go I went full out, but couldn't close the gap to him anymore."

A rapid start in Piasco

The winning break had its genesis in a 31-rider move that formed 85km into the race, after a searing beginning to proceedings in Piasco. Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha), Nibali and Daniele Bennati (Leopard Trek) were among their number, but neither the resurgent Filippo Pozzato (Katusha) nor defending champion Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma-Lotto) succeeded in making the cut.

By that point, world champion Mark Cavendish (HTC-Highroad) had already left the race, the Briton abandoning after just 69km.

With such a strong collection of riders and wide spread of teams, the break quickly built up what would turn out to be an insurmountable lead. With 75km to go, they were 7:35 ahead of the peloton, and it was clear that they would divide the spoils between them, even if a small chase group including Daniel Lloyd (Garmin-Cervélo) and Fabio Felline (Geox-TMC) battled gamely to close the gap.

Though the finale featured no standout climb, the terrain was rolling throughout, and inside the final 30km, the strongmen of the lead group came to the fore. Under impetus from Thomas Löfkvist (Sky), 14 riders forced their way clear and the Swede was joined by Moreno, Rodriguez, Paolini (Katusha), Van Avermaet, Matthias Frank, Ivan Santaromita (BMC), Nibali, Oliver Zaugg, Bennati (Leopard Trek), Nicolas Roche (Ag2r-La Mondiale), Thomas Voeckler (Europcar), Przemysław Niemiec (Lampre-ISD) and André Steensen (Saxo Bank-Sungard).

Katusha and BMC worked to keep the group together on the run-in to the finish, and in spite of the best efforts Roche and Voeckler to force another selection, it all came down to a 14-man sprint.

While Van Avermaet was the man on form in the wake of his Paris-Tours victory, Katusha’s strength won out, with Paolini expertly piloting Moreno in the finishing straight. For good measure, the veteran Italian held off Voeckler and Roche to claim the third place on the podium.