"Third in classification now and 2 seconds from second overall. Tomorrow the sprints will be very important."

Those were the words of Valerio Agnoli after stage seven at the Tour de Langkawi. Agnoli finished third on a day in the mountains of Malaysia, in the same time as Youcef Reguigui of Algeria.

Teammates Daniil Fominykh, Baktiyar Kozhatayev and Andrey Zeits did not start stage seven after falling sick overnight with fever and digestive trouble.

Agnoli is now 12 seconds behind Reguigui in General Classification with one final stage in the Tour de Langkawi. Three riders are tied for second place, just two seconds ahead of the Astana Pro Team rider.

Teammates Maxat Ayazbayev and Andrea Guardini remain healthy and ready to race for Agnoli's General Classification podium hopes on the final, short stage into Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur.