A few weeks after crashing out of his maiden grand tour at the Vuelta a Espana, Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana) bounced back in the best possible way by claiming an impressive solo victory on the Colle di Superga climb at Milan-Turin. Having anticipated the favourites with an attack in the flat run-in to the ascent, he fought it out in a battle with Michael Woods (Cannondale) whom he dropped with a big attack inside the final kilometre. Rigoberto Uran (Cannondale) was the best of the pre-race favourites and rounded out the podium.

 

We have gathered several reactions.

 

Lopez: Now I want to do well in Lombardy

"When I saw the winner's trophy this morning on the brochure of the race I thought: when will it be mine?” Miguel Angel Lopez said. "I'm super happy, I couldn't believe I was winning this beautiful race.

 

“When I caught the rider of the Cannondale I thought to stay a bit on his wheel to save energy for the last km. Then he attacked me and I was obliged to counter attack him. We played some 'mind games' but then when we turned left for the last km I pushed on the pedals as strong as possible.

 

"I want to dedicate this victory to my team mate Michele Scarponi who crashed today during the race. I also have to thank my other team mates and my captain Fabio Aru because they taught me many things. Then of course you need the right legs to win the race but today I can say it was a victory of courage and the strategy of a great team.

 

"Thanks to the team I achieved this magnificent victory here today despite the loss of Michele Scarponi who crashed – I dedicate this achievement to him. Diego Rosa, who was also involved in the crash, did a tremendous job for me as well as Dario Cataldo in bringing back the breakaway. We always speak during the race, that enabled us to change tactic on the way... it was smart to try to go away before the final ascent. I didn't expect to win today. It's beautiful.

 

It was a very fast race with a lot of work by Alessandro Vanotti, Dario Cataldo and the rest of the Astana guys – we remained united. On the first climb to Superga, we decided to try one after the other. I managed to create a bit of a gap and it worked out, but if it wasn’t going to work, we had alternatives.

 

"The tactic from the start was to pay attention to various actions in the final with Aru, Rosa, Fuglsang and myself. After the first ascent our team pulled but we were behind the AG2R La Mondiale and we were told to follow them. At that point, the situation has complicated with some riders who attacked. I was a little back but I moved and I started the ascent with a little advantage. Then I wanted to try without fear knowing that if I was brought back, we were had Aru and Rosa.

 

“Thanks to the confidence given to me by the team this year I managed to achieve a big result [Tour de Suisse overall winner] but I was unlucky at the Vuelta so I’m yet to ride a Grand Tour. I don’t know my race program for next year yet: either I’ll ride the Giro d’Italia with Fabio Aru to help him and try to get the pink jersey, or I’ll go to another Grand Tour as a captain but without pressure for the overall classification."

 

" Today's victory is a good sign ahead of Saturday. I wanted to do a test like that since I came back from Colombia just last week. I've been riding races in Tuscany but I was a bit tired because of the jet lag. But I have improved and now we hope to do well in Lombardy.”

 

Aru: The legs are good enough

Fabio Aru who rode in support of Lopez in the final, finished 6th.

 

"We had different cards and Miguel joined the escape, starting the climb with ten seconds of advantage and managed to win,” he told Spaziociclismo. “In this way we were in front and it is fine. I felt good, the sensations are good enough. We will see what happens in Lombardy .”

 

Runner-up Woods: I was honoured just to be at the start

Mike Woods animated the finale of Milano-Torino, launching an attack with four kilometers still to race. The Canadian made his move on the final climb to the Basilica at Superga. The initial acceleration saw Woods gain a gap on 10 chasers. Then Miguel Lopez (Astana) bridged across.

 

“This was my first real two-man duel in a climb of this duration,” said Woods. “It was pretty thrilling to be apart of, and it hurt a ton. I attacked because I had good legs, and I knew it would force other teams to chase and give Rigo[berto Uran] a smooth ride.”

 

“When Lopez bridged to me we attacked each other several times,” Woods noted. “In retrospect I should have waited far longer to do my final attack; however, I lost a bit of focus and thought we were closer to the finish than we actually were. After making my final attack, we rounded a corner, and I realized we had a lot further to go. This is when I knew I was in trouble.

 

"[Miguel Àngel López] was so strong today! I got a good head start on the mountain climb. But he just paced it really well. I tried to attack him but I just wasn’t as strong as him in the final. However I’m really happy with my performance. This is my fourth race in five days and to see how the legs reacted today, I’m very happy with that."

 

Lopez sensed that Woods was under pressure and seized the chance to throw down a final missive. Woods, unable to respond, finished second to Lopez, nine seconds behind the race winner. Uran jumped out of the chase group to round out the podium.

 

“The team’s plan today was to ride for Rigo,” said Woods. “He has been on great form, and the goal was to try to set him up for the win. I started as a protected rider with the responsibility of following any late attacks that could make it the line.”

 

“The whole team was great today,” Woods added. “Toms Skujins, Matti Breschel and Kristoffer Skjerping did a great job controlling the race and riding on the front. Kristoffer gave me a great lead-out. Without their support, we wouldn’t have been two-three today.”

 

"It is really very special,” he told SpazioCiclismo. “I was honored to be at the start of a race like this and to finish second is really fantastic.

 

“I attacked to put pressure on other teams, to make them work and encourage Rigoberto Uran to attack in the finale.

 

“It's the first time I will do Lombardy. It is a race that I really like. I always watched it on television the past years. Being there means a lot to me." 

Uran: It’s disappointing not to win when you do things right
Third placed Rigoberto Uran said: "When things are done right, it’s a bit disappointing not to win. We maybe could have won the race if I was ahead with Miguel Àngel. I was waiting behind but when I saw that Michael couldn’t follow Miguel Àngel, I made my move, but it was too late for the win. But we’re here to work hard with the aim of winning Il Lombardia. I like this race a lot, I done well before and I want to do well again. It’s a much harder race this time around and I’ll be there fighting for the victory.

 

"We are a strong team and we have to help each other. I think we have proved our worth in view of Lombardy. On that day we will have to work hard, knowing it will be an elimination race where only the strongest will survive 

 

Malori and Fernandez break collarbones in Milan-Turin

The Movistar Team suffered an unfortunate accident today with two of its riders during Milano-Torino, the oldest race on European soil over 186km between Sesto Ulteriano and the tough ascent towards the Basilica di Superga. 60km from the end of the race, Rubén Fernández hit a pothole and crashed, taking Adriano Malori down with him as the latter followed his wheel. Always conscious and stable, both the Spaniard and the Italian were moved by ambulance to the Centro Traumatologico Ortopedico in Turin, where further X-rays and checkups confirmed respective collarbone fractures - left for Malori, right for Fernández. Following convenient immobilization, the two were taken back to the Movistar Team hotel prior to getting back to their homes in the upcoming hours.

 

Ahead in the race, the pace stayed high up to the last two climbs, with the Blues featuring notably afterwards. An attack by Javi Moreno, in pursuit of a ten-man escape forming between the two ascents of Superga, was followed by Giovanni Visconti’s acceleration as Moreno was caught, the Italian veteran trying to make up the difference to a duo belonging to that previous move: Mike Woods (CDT) and Miguel Ángel López (AST). Despite the excellent legs by Dani Moreno, who jumped strong as he got to the final deviation and 600m at 8% average towards the Basilica, the Spaniard ran out of time to reach the two in front - López coming out as winner - and Colombian Rigoberto Urán (CDT), who left Moreno with 4th by a mere five seconds.

 

In-form Ulissi in the top 5 on tough climb at Milan-Turin

After the 2nd place in Tre Valli Varesine, Diego Ulissi obtained 5th place in the Milano-Torino. This additional result in the top 5 confirms that the Italian rider is in a good condition and that he can be competitive on various types of courses.
 

Milano-Torino was for Rui Costa the final test in view of Il Lombardia, key event for the Portuguese rider who was 3rd in Bergamo in the 2014 edition of the Italian classic.

 

"The performance of Ulissi was in line with his past performance and the 5th place, behind the great duo Lopez-Woods is of value, considering the quality of the riders who came to fight for the success on the Superga," said sports director Marco. Marzano. "Cattaneo was good in the early part to get into an action of 11 riders that could have been dangerous. Then a round of applause goes to Niemiec who was withDiego in the run-in to the final climb."

 

Bilbao shows excellent form in Milan-Turin

The Caja Rural - Seguros RGA riders put in an impressive performance in Milano-Torino Wednesday afternoon. Pello Bilbao followed the top favorites on the steep uphill finish to take seventh place as Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana) soloed to victory.
 
Both Ángel Madrazo and Sergio Pardilla attacked on the final climb but the peloton didn't allow either of the Spanish riders get away. Instead, Lopez and Michael Woods (Cannondale-Drapac) got a gap and ended up fighting for the win. Bilbao did well to stay in the group of pre-race favorites behind the leading duo, while Pardilla finished 11th.
 
Pello Bilbao said: 

 

“The team worked very well today, which allowed us to have three riders in the select group approaching the final climb. I tried to follow the wheels of the favorites, hoping to arrive in a small group and sprint for the win. However, the rhythm was very high and we ended up arriving one by one at the finishing line. I want to thank all my teammates who did a perfect job to put me in the best position”.

 

Barguil on the rise with great ride in Milan-Turin.

Warren Barguil had looked to follow the moves as the race came to a head in an exciting showdown on the Colle di Superga, but it was Miguel Ángel Lopez (Astana) who perfectly timed his efforts to overcome a strong field and take the victory. Barguil finished 10th.

 

Warren Barguil said after the stage: “Once again I felt in good shape throughout the whole day. In the finale, the team did a great job in positioning ahead of the climbs. There was also good communication between me and Sam [Oomen], and he did a great job to be part of a late breakaway. Maybe I attacked too early on the uphill finish, but I managed to recover and get a top 10 finish. Overall I am satisfied with this performance and I look forward to Saturday.”

 

Coach Aike Visbeek added: “I think the team gave a really good effort today. There was great teamwork from the whole team and Tobias [Ludvigsson] and Simon [Geschke] did well to support Warren and Sam in the finale. Indeed Warren and Sam were part of a select group of 30 riders ahead of the tough uphill finish.

 

“Sam managed to be in one of the late breakaways but on the final climb it all came back together. Warren tried to go clear but his attack was probably too early. In the end, he did a good job to ride to 10th place considering it is his second race since La Vuelta. The condition of Warren is heading in the right direction and we can be pleased with this result.”

 

Kennaugh on the attack, König and Poels come up short

Pete Kennaugh spent the day in the breakaway at Milano-Torino while Leopold Konig led the team home in 12th.

 

Kennaugh was part of a three-man move over the 186-kilometre course and pushed on solo as the race approached its undulating finale. Finally swept up by a fractured peloton with 9km to go, Kennaugh slotted back into the pack as a group formed off the front.

 

Mikel Landa was part of a select group which launched the eventual winning move. Michael Woods (Cannondale-Drapac) launched clear but was overhauled heading into the final kilometre by Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana).

 

The Colombian held on to take the win, with Rigoberto Uran (Cannondale-Drapac) rounding out the podium. Konig rode hard on the final climb to lead the Team Sky charge.

 

After the race Sport Director Kurt Arvesen talked TeamSky.com through how the action played out, and explained the team had always aimed to get Kennaugh up the road.

 

He said: "That was always the plan, to put him or [Michal] Golas in the break. Golas went in the first move which was caught, so Pete counter attacked and then stayed away, almost to the finish line.

 

"It was perfect to have Pete out there all day because we could save the team, it wasn't up to us to chase, and to be fair at one point I thought this was going to be a good day! But Pete was finally caught, and there were too many strong teams there at the end. There were 12 teams, so it was hard for Pete alone, but a great effort from him.

 

"Golas and Kiry [Kiryienka] did a brilliant job of bringing the team into the climb and Leo was there fighting until the end, but he just missed a little bit."

 

The action continues on Thursday with another Italian one-day event in the form of Gran Piemonte.

 

Arvesen added: "Tomorrow we need to be careful with the breakaway, only two days before Il Lombardia, you never know what's going to happen. We will try to get in the break, and if that doesn't stick, we will be there with Elia [Viviani] and [Ben] Swift for the sprint."

 

BMC: We have no excuses, we simply didn’t have the legs

Alessandro De Marchi spent the day in the breakaway at Milano-Torino in another strong showing from the Italian rider racing on home soil.

 

De Marchi formed part of the day’s three-rider breakaway, alongside Peter Kennaugh (Team Sky) and Eduard Grosu (Nippo-Vini Fantini), that gained a maximum advantage of 11 minutes after the peloton sat up and let the trio go clear.

 

Kennaugh went clear just over 20km from the finish line, but he too was caught inside the final 10km by a reduced peloton that included Ben Hermans and Manuel Senni.

 

BMC Racing Team line up at Giro del Piemonte on Thursday before the final UCI Worldtour race of the season, Il Lombardia, on Saturday.

 

Sports director Valerio Piva said:

 

“The plan for today was to go in the breakaway if there was a big group. At first there were 12 riders who went clear including Alessandro De Marchi but they were pulled back by the bunch. Then De Marchi went clear with Peter Kennaugh and Eduard Grosu. De Marchi and Kennaugh are strong riders but there was never a chance for them to stay away, even with an eleven-minute lead.

 

“I was hoping to have Ben Hermans, Darwin Atapuma and Samuel Sanchez up there but today the form just wasn’t there and Samuel is looking ahead to Il Lombardia on Saturday. Manuel Senni was good in the finale and he was attacking but he is a young rider so doesn’t have the experience at this level. It was good to see him making the moves and trying to stay up there for as long as possible. I think Ben Hermans was in the top 15 riders. There are no excuses, today we just didn’t have the legs to be in the top ten.

 

“Giro del Piemonte tomorrow is an entirely different race as it’s for the rouleurs. We have Jempy Drucker and Philippe Gilbert and I think we can race aggressively there.”

 

Aggressive ride by Mamykin at Milan-Tunin

For Team KATUSHA, young Matvey Mamykin put himself in the front of the race for the final part, attentive to the moves that could prove to be winning opportunities, but just fell short.

 

In particular he attacked with 10 km to go in a small group, but was caught by the chasing group at 3 km to go as eventual winner Miguel Ángel López (Astana) and Michael Woods (Cannondale-Drapac) rode away from the group.

 

Two more races on Italian soil are still to come with team leader Joaquim Rodriguez taking part in both. Thursday brings the Giro del Piemonte and Saturday is the final classic of the season, the Race of the Falling Leaves, Il Lombardia.

 

Tinkoff look to Piemonte after bad day for Majka

Coming into the race as last year’s runner up, Rafal Majka was one of Tinkoff’s protected riders, and for much of the first ascent of the tough Superga climb he was looking in contention. However, after dropping off the pace of the select front group in the final kilometre before the top he wasn't able to regain contact. The lead group went on to fight out the victory on the final ascent as Rafal Majka his legs for the racing to come.

 

Tinkoff led the chase as the first ascent drew close, ramping up the pace dramatically to put others under pressure and to hit the base of the climb in the best possible position. As a result, the gap tumbled and the last rider out front from the break was caught on the descent of the first climb.

Majka  stuck with the pace up the climb, riding near the front, but as the attacks came he slipped back gradually until he lost contact. That was to be his and the team’s race over for the day as the lead group pulled clear over the top and on the run-in to the last ascent.

 

Sport Director, Lars Michaelsen explained the race situation further after the finish.

 

“We protected Jesper Hansen and Rafal Majka, and coming into the Superga first time the boys did a really good job to take command. They came into the bottom of the climb in a good position and Rafal went up the first 4.5km in the first 6 or 7 riders, but towards the top he lacked the power to stick with it.

 

"Jesper is still coming back from injury, it’s only his second race after two months without racing, so it was a test for him today. The other guys did their job well, and our stagiaires, Davide Ballerini and Lorenzo Fortunato, did a good job today too.

 

“Tomorrow we have some different riders coming in again, and we hope to push for a better result than the last two days.”

 

The third of the one-day racing before Il Lombardia is the Giro del Piemonte, sure to be another attacking race but one that suits the sprinters more than the past two days.