Marco Pinotti will return to action for the first time since a high speed crash knocked him out of the Tour Mediterranéen when the BMC Racing Team begins the Giro del Trentino on Tuesday.

Pinotti broke two ribs and his left collarbone during the stage 2 individual time trial at the Tour Mediterranéen on February 7. The five-time Italian national time trial champion said he has been training for six weeks to rebuild his base condition.

“I guess I'm halfway in the recovery process," he said. "Having been sidelined four-and-a-half weeks, I needed about 12-13 weeks to get back to my former level.” Pinotti said his aim for the five-stage, four-day race is two-fold. “The goal is to get a good block of volume and intensity, getting the right amount of fatigue I need to keep building my condition,” he said. “Achieving that, while also helping the team, would be ideal.”

Pinotti’s teammate, Cadel Evans, said the race is an important part of his preparation for the Giro d'Italia. “I look forward to racing on long and hard climbs in a good field,” he said. “I just want to be able to ride well with the team and use it to get ready for the Giro d'Italia.”

Assistant Director Fabio Baldato said one aim will be the stage 2 team time trial. “Last year, we won it with Taylor Phinney and Alessandro Ballan and we have strong riders again with Evans, Pinotti and Sebastian Lander,” Baldato said. “We will do a training camp for it on Monday to try to be ready to make our best result.”

 BMC Racing Team Giro del Trentino roster:
Adam Blythe (GBR), Yannick Eijssen (BEL), Cadel Evans (AUS), Martin Kohler (SUI), Sebastian Lander (DEN), Marco Pinotti (ITA), Ivan Santaromita (ITA), Larry Warbasse (USA).