Simone Velasco earns surprise win in Italian elite men's road race

Simone Velasco (Astana Qazaqstan) won his first Italian National Road title from a six-rider sprint in Comano Terme on Saturday. Lorenzo Rota (Intermarché-Circus-Wanty) earned the silver medal and Kristian Sbaragli (Alpecin-Deceuninck) took the bronze. 

Filippo Magli (Green Project-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè) finished just off the podium in fourth, along with the UAE Team Emirates duo of Matteo Trentin and Davide Formolo, finishing fifth and sixth, respectively. 

Samuele Battistella (Astana Qazaqstan) had been in the break across the final climb, but fell back when he began to cramp. His place at the front was taken by Trentin, who fell short in the final sprint.

Velasco rocketed past Rota and Sbaragli in the final 100 metres for the victory, looking a bit surprised as he crossed the line for the victory. After the tight finish, race officials looked at the replay to see if the final moves by Rota and Sbaragli impeded the other riders behind the 27-year-old Astana rider, but the results were not changed. 

“It was a very tough race but as a team we managed to do it in a right way. We were always up there in front, working hard and controlling the situation. It started with Leonardo Basso, who worked absolutely impressive, pulling in front of the group and later all other guys helped and supported me a lot. Also, Samuele Battistella made an amazing job in the break, allowing me to save some energy and to come quite fresh to the final," Velasco said.

On Thursday, Velasco finished fourth in the time trial nationals. His best finish in the road race across the past seven appearances was 15th last year.

The 38-rider field for elite men covered 227km on the course in Trentino with 3,730 metres of elevation gain, punctuated with nine ascents of the Cavrasto climb, 5.6km with pitches between 2.9% to 8.7%. The final ascent on the circuit launched riders into Comano Terme, the final 5km downhill with a flat finish.

"I am so happy and proud with this victory, but also with the way we spent this day together with my teammates. This victory is very emotional to me, and it gives me a great motivation to the future, to continue working hard pursuing the next big goals,” said Velasco, who adds the national title as his second win of the year, along with his victory in Stage 3 of the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana.

Results

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