Having already proved his good condition in the Tour de Slovenie, Matteo Rabottini was clearly one of the strongest in today's Italian road race championships. After putting in an aggressive showing, he finished third.

Last week Matteo Rabottini finished fourth in the queen stage of the Tour de Slovenie to prove that he has come out of the Giro d'Italia in good condition and so he went into today's Italian championships road race as a clear outsider. The Neri Sottoli lived up to his promises by putting in an aggressive ride that was ultimately rewarded with a bronze medal.

Rabottini tried to attack several times in the finale but every time he failed to get rid of Vincenzo Nibali and Davide Formolo. When the former launched his decisive attack, he managed to hold on for a little while but finally had to surrender.

Nontheless, he was pleased with his performance.

"I wanted to do a great race and I think I succeeded," he told Tuttobiciweb. "On several occasions I tried to make a selection. Even on the last climb I was the first to attack because there was a small standstill and no one wanted to hit the front. I missed just missed a little bit to be able to hold the wheel of Nibali and Formolo.

"Now I'll take a break and then I will prepare the second part of the season. I am very sorry not to be able to achieve the maximum result."