Pinot wins Milano-Torino
Lopez finishes second after crash on final ascent, Valverde third
Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ) claimed victory in Milano-Torino with a late attack on the final climb of the race. The win was not without controversy as Pinot's winning move came just as one of his main rivals and runner-up Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana) crashed into one of Pinot's teammates just before the winning attack was made. World champion Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) rounded out the podium and finished third in a race that was decided by the two climbs of the Superga as much as it was the late crash and Pinot's formidable form.
"It's a great victory for me," Pinot said. "Milano-Torino is a race I really like. I really like the Classics so to finally win one is very important for me."
The incident involving Lopez came after Astana and FDJ had broken up the race on the final ascent. A group containing Pinot, Lopez, Valverde, Jakob Fuglsang, and David Gaudu (FDJ) had forged clear and just as Gaudu swung off the front after his final turn Lopez put his head and attacked. The two riders collided, and with Fuglsang already out the back only Valverde and Pinot remained at the front of the race. The Frenchman was left at the head of affairs and without even attacking he saw his pace setting distance Valverde. Lopez quickly remounted but despite a spirited chase Pinot had enough to take the prestigious win. Lopez crossed the line 10 seconds later, with Valverde a further 18 seconds in arrears.
The first ascent of the Superga had set the tone for the finale. The 9 per cent average gradient, with pitches of 14 per cent in sections, saw Valverde open up the afterburners with 21km to go. The new world champion was clearly in fine fettle and intent on breaking up the race but although his first acceleration was matched by a number of rivals, none of the riders who initially made the juncture were willing to work him.
Before the final climb the race had been defined by a four-man break that contained Willie Smit (Katusha-Alpecin), Umberto Orsini (Bardiani-CSF), Krists Neilands (Israel Cycling Academy), and the Chuck Norris of breakaways, Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal).
The foursome established a lead of almost six minutes but they were swept up as the road steepened on the Superga.
Although Valverde's first attack was quickly countered, the Spaniard's acceleration was enough to reduce the main field to less than 30 riders. A second attack from the Movistar man did further damage with Rui Costa and Gianni Moscon among those who fell back.
Over the top the climb, Valverde pressed on again, and this attack drew Pinot, Gaudu and Rafal Majka into action. A further volley of riders made contact on the descent with Daniel Martin, Tim Wellens, Fabio Aru and Adam Yates still in contention.
On the approach to the final climb, Peter Stetina attacked, and while the American rode well, his acceleration only acted as a foil with Fuglsang, the ever-impressive Gaudu and Daniel Martinez (EF Education First-Drapac) going clear. The trio, with Martinez marking the move for his teammates behind, established a 14-second lead as the road began to rise, but a series of attacks, led by Yates, Wellens and then Mollema saw the trio brought back into sight.
With 3.7km to go Yates attacked. He was soon joined by Pinot and it looked as though the winning move had formed when the two riders bridged up to the leaders.
However, Valverde had other ideas. The 38-year-old, who served a two-year ban for doping, breezed by Mollema and made contact with Pinot, Gaudu and Yates within a few hundred metres. Fuglsang was briefly distanced but returned with Lopez, as Yates slipped out of the group.
Gaudu then set about controlling the pace with Pinot neatly tucked in and Valverde and Astana's Lopez seemingly waiting for the moment to pounce. However, just as Gaudu swung off to the right, Lopez attacked on the same side. If the Colombian had kept his head up he would have seen the FDJ sized obstacle in his path but the briefest of looks to the ground cost the Astana man his momentum and his place in the group. By the time Pinot even looked around he was already clear with Valverde on the rivet and unable to respond. Pinot pressed on the pedals and rode for home and the race was won.
Full Results
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
---|---|---|
1 | Thibaut Pinot (Fra) Groupama-FDJ | 4:43:36 |
2 | Miguel Angel Lopez Moreno (Col) Astana Pro Team | 0:00:10 |
3 | Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar Team | 0:00:28 |
4 | Mattia Cattaneo (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec | 0:00:36 |
5 | Sébastien Reichenbach (Swi) Groupama-FDJ | 0:00:38 |
6 | Wilco Kelderman (Ned) Team Sunweb | |
7 | Domenico Pozzovivo (Ita) Bahrain-Merida | 0:00:41 |
8 | Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana Pro Team | |
9 | Fabio Aru (Ita) UAE Team Emirates | 0:00:43 |
10 | Egan Arley Bernal Gomez (Col) Team Sky | 0:00:45 |
11 | Hugh John Carthy (GBr) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale | |
12 | Davide Formolo (Ita) Bora-Hansgrohe | 0:00:48 |
13 | Rafal Majka (Pol) Bora-Hansgrohe | 0:00:59 |
14 | Adam Yates (GBr) Mitchelton-Scott | 0:01:02 |
15 | Bauke Mollema (Ned) Trek-Segafredo | |
16 | Daniel Martin (Irl) UAE Team Emirates | 0:01:13 |
17 | Tim Wellens (Bel) Lotto Soudal | 0:01:15 |
18 | Ben Hermans (Bel) Israel-Cycling Academy | |
19 | Warren Barguil (Fra) Fortuneo-Samsic | 0:01:27 |
20 | David Gaudu (Fra) Groupama-FDJ | 0:01:38 |
21 | Daniel Felipe Martinez Poveda (Col) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale | 0:01:41 |
22 | Giulio Ciccone (Ita) Bardiani CSF | 0:02:00 |
23 | Marco Tizza (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa Ovini | 0:02:25 |
24 | Peter Stetina (USA) Trek-Segafredo | 0:02:33 |
25 | Jan Polanc (Slo) UAE Team Emirates | 0:02:37 |
26 | Jose Manuel Diaz Gallego (Spa) Israel-Cycling Academy | |
27 | Andrey Zeits (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | |
28 | Christopher Hamilton (Aus) Team Sunweb | |
29 | Pieter Serry (Bel) Quick-Step Floors | 0:02:49 |
30 | Niklas Eg (Den) Trek-Segafredo | |
31 | Giovanni Carboni (Ita) Bardiani CSF | 0:02:53 |
32 | Bjorg Lambrecht (Bel) Lotto Soudal | 0:03:01 |
33 | Ivan Ramiro Sosa Cuervo (Col) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec | |
34 | Mikel Nieve Iturralde (Spa) Mitchelton-Scott | |
35 | Alessandro De Marchi (Ita) BMC Racing Team | 0:03:13 |
36 | Simone Velasco (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia | 0:03:16 |
37 | Maxime Monfort (Bel) Lotto Soudal | 0:03:19 |
38 | Miguel Eduardo Florez Lopez (Col) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia | 0:03:23 |
39 | Kenny Elissonde (Fra) Team Sky | 0:03:29 |
40 | Anthony Delaplace (Fra) Fortuneo-Samsic | 0:03:35 |
41 | Joan Bou Company (Spa) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa Ovini | 0:03:37 |
42 | Joseph Lloyd Dombrowski (USA) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale | 0:03:49 |
43 | Dylan Teuns (Bel) BMC Racing Team | 0:04:03 |
44 | Luis León Sanchez (Spa) Astana Pro Team | |
45 | Luca Raggio (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia | |
46 | Jan Hirt (Cze) Astana Pro Team | 0:04:05 |
47 | Winner Andrew Anacona (Col) Movistar Team | 0:04:28 |
48 | Rui Costa (Por) UAE Team Emirates | 0:04:30 |
49 | Fausto Masnada (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec | 0:04:29 |
50 | Jérémy Maison (Fra) Fortuneo-Samsic | 0:04:38 |
51 | José Fernandes Neves (Por) W52/Fc Porto | 0:04:45 |
52 | Ivan Santaromita (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa Ovini | 0:04:59 |
53 | Sebastian Schönberger (Aut) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia | 0:05:01 |
54 | Mikkel Frølich Honoré (Den) Team Waoo | 0:05:03 |
55 | José Gonçalves (Por) Katusha-Alpecin | |
56 | Sergio Luis Henao Montoya (Col) Team Sky | 0:05:06 |
57 | Matteo Spreafico (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec | 0:05:08 |
58 | Tiesj Benoot (Bel) Lotto Soudal | 0:05:58 |
59 | Guy Niv (Isr) Israel-Cycling Academy | 0:06:15 |
60 | Manuel Senni (Ita) Bardiani CSF | 0:06:24 |
61 | Giovanni Visconti (Ita) Bahrain-Merida | 0:06:25 |
62 | Gorka Izaguirre Insausti (Spa) Bahrain-Merida | |
63 | Ilnur Zakarin (Rus) Katusha-Alpecin | |
64 | Simon Špilak (Slo) Katusha-Alpecin | 0:06:39 |
65 | David De La Cruz Melgarejo (Spa) Team Sky | 0:07:09 |
66 | Enric Mas Nicolau (Spa) Quick-Step Floors | |
67 | Freddy Ovett (Aus) Australian Cycling Academy - Ride Sunshine Coast | 0:07:12 |
68 | Marc Soler (Spa) Movistar Team | 0:08:48 |
69 | Antonio Pedrero (Spa) Movistar Team | 0:08:50 |
70 | Joseph Rosskopf (USA) BMC Racing Team | 0:09:35 |
71 | Ilia Koshevoy (Blr) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia | 0:09:41 |
72 | Jai Hindley (Aus) Team Sunweb | 0:10:00 |
73 | Gianni Moscon (Ita) Team Sky | |
74 | Daniel Savini (Ita) Bardiani CSF | |
75 | Jhonnatan Narvaez (Ecu) Quick-Step Floors | |
76 | Andrea Vendrame (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec | |
77 | Hector Carretero (Spa) Movistar Team | |
78 | Rory Sutherland (Aus) UAE Team Emirates | |
79 | Luca Wackermann (Ita) Bardiani CSF | |
80 | Sebastian Henao Gomez (Col) Team Sky | |
81 | Peter Kennaugh (GBr) Bora-Hansgrohe | |
82 | Kevin Rivera Serrano (CRc) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec | |
83 | Maurits Lammertink (Ned) Katusha-Alpecin | |
84 | Filippo Zaccanti (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa Ovini | |
85 | Elie Gesbert (Fra) Fortuneo-Samsic | |
86 | Dayer Quintana (Col) Movistar Team | |
87 | Brice Feillu (Fra) Fortuneo-Samsic | |
88 | Willem Jakobus Smit (RSA) Katusha-Alpecin | 0:11:22 |
89 | Ruben Plaza (Spa) Israel-Cycling Academy | 0:11:49 |
90 | Matthieu Ladagnous (Fra) Groupama-FDJ | 0:15:45 |
91 | Damiano Caruso (Ita) BMC Racing Team | |
92 | Diego Rosa (Ita) Team Sky | |
93 | Eros Capecchi (Ita) Quick-Step Floors | |
94 | Kim Magnusson (Swe) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale | |
95 | Andrea Bagioli (Ita) UAE Team Emirates | |
96 | Franck Bonnamour (Fra) Fortuneo-Samsic | |
97 | Laurent Didier (Lux) Trek-Segafredo | |
98 | Andrea Garosio (Ita) D'amico Utensilnord | |
99 | Nicola Conci (Ita) Trek-Segafredo | |
100 | James Shaw (GBr) Lotto Soudal | |
101 | Michael Storer (Aus) Team Sunweb | |
102 | Omer Goldshtein (Isr) Israel-Cycling Academy | |
103 | Nikita Stalnov (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | |
104 | Filippo Ganna (Ita) UAE Team Emirates | |
105 | Léo Vincent (Fra) Groupama-FDJ | |
106 | Cesare Benedetti (Ita) Bora-Hansgrohe | |
107 | Patrick Konrad (Aut) Bora-Hansgrohe | |
108 | Umberto Orsini (Ita) Bardiani CSF | 0:16:13 |
109 | Alexander Evans (Aus) Mobius Bridgelane | 0:16:23 |
DNF | Sacha Modolo (Ita) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale | |
DNF | Cyrus Monk (Aus) Drapac Ef P/B Cannondale Holistic Development Team | |
DNF | Marco Frapporti (Ita) Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec | |
DNF | Dario Cataldo (Ita) Astana Pro Team | |
DNF | Enrico Gasparotto (Ita) Bahrain-Merida | |
DNF | Kristijan Koren (Slo) Bahrain-Merida | |
DNF | Maxim Pirard (Bel) Bahrain-Merida | |
DNF | Mirco Maestri (Ita) Bardiani CSF | |
DNF | Alberto Bettiol (Ita) BMC Racing Team | |
DNF | Emanuel Buchmann (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe | |
DNF | William Bonnet (Fra) Groupama-FDJ | |
DNF | Jérémy Roy (Fra) Groupama-FDJ | |
DNF | Krists Neilands (Lat) Israel-Cycling Academy | |
DNF | Guillaume Boivin (Can) Israel-Cycling Academy | |
DNF | Thomas De Gendt (Bel) Lotto Soudal | |
DNF | Jens Keukeleire (Bel) Lotto Soudal | |
DNF | Michael Albasini (Swi) Mitchelton-Scott | |
DNF | Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Mitchelton-Scott | |
DNF | Rob Power (Aus) Mitchelton-Scott | |
DNF | Robert Stannard (Aus) Mitchelton-Scott | |
DNF | Carlos Verona (Spa) Mitchelton-Scott | |
DNF | Carlos Betancur (Col) Movistar Team | |
DNF | Nicola Bagioli (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa Ovini | |
DNF | Juan Jose Lobato Del Valle (Spa) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa Ovini | |
DNF | Simone Ponzi (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini-Europa Ovini | |
DNF | Bob Jungels (Lux) Quick-Step Floors | |
DNF | Laurens De Plus (Bel) Quick-Step Floors | |
DNF | Romain Le Roux (Fra) Fortuneo-Samsic | |
DNF | Robert Kišerlovski (Cro) Katusha-Alpecin | |
DNF | Jhonatan Restrepo Valencia (Col) Katusha-Alpecin | |
DNF | Sam Oomen (Ned) Team Sunweb | |
DNF | Lennard Kämna (Ger) Team Sunweb | |
DNF | Michael Matthews (Aus) Team Sunweb | |
DNF | Eugenio Alafaci (Ita) Trek-Segafredo | |
DNF | Toms Skujins (Lat) Trek-Segafredo | |
DNF | Nicholas Rinaldi (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia | |
DNF | Edoardo Zardini (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia |
Latest on Cyclingnews
-
UCI confirms that Cyclo-cross World Championships will go ahead this weekend
COVID-19 pandemic forces tighter health measures in Oostende -
Sportful clothing: Details, pricing and highlights
Want to know your Giara from your Fiandre? Here's everything you need to know about the latest range of Sportful clothing -
Philippa York: Pro cycling can be a toxic place for an athlete's long-term well-being
Understanding the pressures of professional cycling, both mental and physical -
Zwift launches Black Celebration Series to commemorate 'Black history, athletes, heritage and joy'
The year-long series of events kicks off in February and includes special guests and social rides
Sign up to the Cyclingnews Newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information about how to do this, and how we hold your data, please see our privacy policy
Thank you for signing up to Cycling News. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.