Sergey Lagutin has been one of the most consistent riders in the Trittico Lombardo race series. Having finished sixth in the Coppa Bernocchi, the Russian was seventh in yesterday's Coppa Agostoni and now sets his sights on Tre Vallie Varesine.

RusVelo rider Sergey Lagutin has been among the leaders in two consecutive Italian one–day races, making part of the popular Trittico Lombardo series. The day after finishing sixth in Coppa Bernocchi, the Russian crossed the line as seventh in Coppa Agostoni.

The 199 km-long race was held in the area north of Monza; mostly flat, it crossed a pre-Alpine ridge in its second half, where the main selection was made. Suffice to say that only sixty two out of more than two hundred starters made it to the finish. The race was decided in a bunch sprint won by Niccolo Bonifazio (Lampre-Merida).

Sergey Lagutin said:

“The race was extremely fast right from the start, with the speed around 60 km/h most of the time. And yet, two breakaways were formed: first a large one, that was chased down pretty soon; then a smaller one went away. The latter was easier to control, and big teams in the bunch made sure to close the gap the moment they needed.

"The peloton fell completely apart on the third climb of the day; I found myself with those who had to give a chase on a technical descent. When whatever was left of the bunch came together there were no more than sixty riders left in it; the climbers were reeled in and everything came to a bunch sprint. I’m not a sprint specialist, the teammates did their best to bring me to the front and I made the most of the position I had; so I can be reasonably satisfied with the result.

"We had a two-week long training camp in Livigno, then did come special TTT training for the Worlds. Overall, the team created a solid functional base; we are still lacking some speed but keep gaining it quickly. Tomorrow is the third part of the Trittico Lombardo, Tre Valli Versine, with the course that suits me most of the three, I’ll do my best to give it a serious try”.