Damiano Cunego has put some difficult seasons behind him and proved to be back at a competitive level in the Ardennes classics. After taking 13th at Liege-Bastogne-Liege, the Italian feels that he back to his best.

Lampre-Merida lined up a very strong roster with several options at last Sunday's Liege-Bastogne-Liege. Diego Ulissi, Damiano Cunego and Rui Costa who had been the leaders in the first two Ardennes classics were joined by an in-form Przemyslaw Niemiec who arrived from Italy after having taken third at the Giro del Trentino.

The team got their race off to a very bad start when Costa's streak of bad luck continued. The world champion crashed out of the race but luckily escaped any serious injuries and he will be at the start of the Tour de Romandie later today.

Hence, it was left to the three remaining leaders to come away with the goods and while Ulissi again proved that he lacks a bit in the very long races, Cunego and Niemiec were right in the mix. The former ended up being the best rider from the team when he crossed the line in 13th while the latter ended 21st.

"I was fine, I was always in the top positions and with the favorites of the race," Cunego said. "It was hard to make a difference with so many great riders. It was not easy to decide how to attack as there were so many potential winners. Up to 800 meters from the line, I was still in front, then the final was even faster and I missed the final bit. I gave my best and I have proven to be back at the competitive level that I want to be at."