BMC Racing Team's Samuel Sánchez finished fifth and Philippe Gilbert was seventh Sunday at Il Lombardia as Cadel Evans competed in Europe for the final time.

Gilbert and Sánchez were part of a small group that separated themselves from the peloton on the final climb, less than five kilometers from the finish of the 256-km race. Sánchez led on the descent but when the road flattened in the final kilometer, Daniel Martin (Garmin-Sharp) attacked and soloed to a one-second victory.

Alejandro Valverde (Movistar Team) finished second and Rui Costa (Lampre-Merida) was third. Sánchez said the finish of the race – moved from Como to Bergamo – made it much different than past editions where he had three times finished runner-up.

"The course changed a lot," Sánchez said. "Philippe and I tried to do the best race possible and we tried to help each other get the victory." Gilbert said being a double winner of the race meant he was heavily marked. "There was a lot of control, but I think that is normal at the WorldTour level, especially when there are UCI points on the table," he said. With two riders in the top 10, the BMC Racing Team vaulted from six to third in the team standings with only the Tour of Beijing remaining on the WorldTour calendar.

Evans, who last month announced his final races will be in Australia next January and February, played the role of helper on the way to finishing 25th.

"I gave my last bit to put Gilbert at the front for the last climb so he could play his card from there," Evans said. "I also thought Ben Hermans was in a great position to put pressure on the other teams." In the last 45 km, Hermans was part of a small group chasing the remnants of a 10-man breakaway that once enjoyed a more than 11-minute lead.  Eventually, it was just Hermans and Pieter Weening (ORICA-GreenEDGE) still in front of the peloton on the approach to the last climb.

"Ben did a great move to cover the team before the final," BMC Racing Team Sport Director Fabio Baldato said to the BMC website. "We went like we expected to the last climb with our leaders, Gilbert and Sánchez, and they both tried to go away on the climb."