Niemiec outsprints Santaromita for stage win

Przemyslaw Niemiec (Miche) outsprinted his breakaway companion Ivan Santaromita (Liquigas-Doimo) to win stage three. Riccardo Riccò (Ceramica Flaminia) led home a three-man chase group for third place.

Santaromita's second place was enough to give him the overall lead by 58 seconds ahead of Riccò and Niemiec.

After the stage's start, six racers quickly launched themselves into a breakaway including Dmytro Grabovskyy (ISD - Neri), Simon Clarke (ISD - Neri), Cristiano Salerno (De Rosa - Stac Plastic), Rubens Bertogliati (Androni Giocattoli), Kristjan Fajt (Adria Mobil) and Giuseppe Muraglia (CDC - Cavaliere). During their time off the front, they got over a three-minute advantage, but staying away was not to be the day's outcome.

Of the leaders, only Clarke and Muraglia were able to stay away. Stefano Pirazzi (Colnago - CSF Inox) and Bertogliati chased them as the rest of the initial break members were absorbed by the group.

Before long, Clarke was left alone at the front. Wall fell back into no man's land as Riccò, Giovanni Visconti (ISD - Neri) and Emanuele Sella (Carmiooro NGC) chased him.

The peloton came back together and then Niemiec (Miche) took a mountain contest ahead of Fortunato Baliani (Miche) and Ruslan Pydgornyy (ISD - Neri)

Luca Ascani (CDC - Cavaliere) then led a break effort and was joined by six other men. The group continued to grow and included riders like Visconti; however, there seemed to be little cohesiveness among the riders.

With 20km to go, 30 men found themselves together at the front and in control of the race. A further selection was made, leaving 11 riders at the front: Santaromita, Visconti, Clarke, Pydgornyy, Chiarini, Alessandro Bisolti (Colnago - CSF Inox), Ruggero Marzoli (Acqua & Sapone), Sergio Pardilla Bellon (Carmiooro NGC), Jackson Rodriguez (Androni Giocattoli), Niemiec and Davide D'Angelo (CDC - Cavaliere). Clarke, who's spent plenty of time at the front today, fell into difficulty.

When the group hit another climb, Santaromita and Niemiec found themselves at the front, chased by Chiarini, Pardilla and Rodriguez. Serpa Perez, Bisolti and Visconti followed.

Santaromita and Niemiec earned themselves a lead of 20 seconds with 10km to go. Pozzovivo and Serpa Perez formed the first chase group and Riccò, Visconti and Pydgornyy also chased, a bit further back at 35 seconds.

Riccò and Visconti seemed to recover, moving up to the role of lead chasers along with Pozzovivo and Serpa Perez. The leaders' gap fell to 18 seconds on a descent with six kilometres to go.

Yet with 2km to go, Santaromita and Niemiec were more comfortably still off the front, then with a 40-second advantage. The two entered the final straight together, knowing they couldn't be caught before the line and that one of them would win the stage.

Niemiec outsprinted Santaromita to win stage three.