On a day where even the most decorated GC contenders struggled to keep up on the steepest slopes, Peter Sagan (Cannondale) proved his versatility by following an attack by Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) to claim his second stage victory in the race while Nibali took over race lead. According to Sagan their perfect cooperation was down to a friendship developed during their time as Liquigas teammates.

If anyone still doubted Sagan's potential in the classics, those doubts may been put to rest today. On a course looking like an Ardennes classics he kept cool at the front of the peloton under rainy conditions and had the strength to follow the strongest on the incredibly steep climbs towards the end of the race. In the end his fellow escapees Vincenzo Nibali and Joaquin Rodriguez (Katusha) were no match for his superior sprint.

It was difficult to see, but Sagan was actually not on his best day. His strong attempt to repeat his victory last year's victory in Chieti had taken its toll.

“It was a difficult win on a hard day," Sagan said. "I didn’t feel really good in the morning, also because of the effort in the past few days. The stage was hard from the start. I tried not to spend too much energy in the first part of the race and felt a bit better."

As his sensations improved, Cannondale showed its collective strength by putting 6 teammates around their leader in a drastically reduced peloton. As soon as the course flattened out, they hit the front to reel in the day's early break and lay the foundations for Slovakian's victory.

The decisive attack was made by Nibali who put in a furious acceleration on the penultimate climb, and only Sagan and Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) were able to join him. Sanchez was later replaced by Rodriguez, and with differing objectives - Sagan wanted the stage win, his companions time in GC - the cooperation was perfect.

The smooth understanding was, however, also down to Nibali's and Sagan's common past.

"We decided to get to the front of the bunch because we saw a good opportunity for a result," Sagan said. "My teammates were great in catching the break. When Nibali decided to attack, I thought it was a good chance. We raced three years together, so we’re friends and this helped us to work together. I'm not sure how it would have played out without him. I’m happy for me and for him: he deserves the leader's jersey with a brave action.”

“Earlier in the stage he asked me how I was. I said I didn’t know if I’d be able to stay at the front. In the end we were both still there. Even I wasn’t interested in the overall lead, as Vincenzo’s friend, I still took turns at the front. And I was very happy to see him in the move today.”

Another special victory salute

Sagan became famous for his funny victory salutes at last year's Tour de France. Today he invented a new one as he was seen crossing the line kissing his biceps.

According to the Slovakian champion, the special celebration was due to the extreme steepness of the climbs.

“It was a very hard stage," Sagan said. "When the rain started to fall, the gradients of 30% were hard to get up. I heard Contador say that, when he climbed out of the saddle, his back wheel slipped. I rode in the saddle all the time and, in the end, I got away with Vincenzo and stayed away to the finish line."

“Today I needed my biceps as well as the legs. Some climbs felt like a 30% slope, so I had to work with the arms to maintain the rhythm: they deserved a public thanks!”

Caution ahead of Milan-Sanremo

Today's display of strength once again highlighted Sagan as the overwhelming favourite for this Sunday's Milan-Sanremo. Given his fast finishing speed and his ability to stay with the best on the climbs, his competitor may struggle to see how he could be beaten.

However, Sagan remained cautious ahead of his first big season objective.

“Every year I’m the favourite, but I still haven’t won it," he said. "Everyone can be beaten. Cycling is beautiful because you need to think on the spot. One mistake can cost you the race. We’ll see on Sunday.”

Before focusing Sanremo, Sagan will have to finish Tirreno-Adriatico which ends tomorrow with a 9 km time trial in San Benedetto del Tronto. You can follow all the action live on CyclingQuotes.com/live starting at 14.30.