Peter Sagan has not missed his annual victory at Tirreno-Adriatico. Today, in Arezzo, finish line of the third stage (210 km, started from Cascina), the Slovakian champion took an amazing victory thanks to a powerful sprint on the final short uphill.

 

For Sagan it's the second victory in the season (the first came in Oman) and the fourth in the Italian stages race (one in 2012 and two in 2013). Behind him Michal Kwiatkowski (OmegaPharma-QuickStep), Simon Clarke (Orica-GreenEdge) and Philippe Gilbert (Bmc) rounded out the top 4.

 

"It was an important victory for me to prove to myself that the condition is growing" said Sagan. "I'm very happy, of course. It's very good for the morale, for me and my teammates as well, who need a special thanks for the great support they give me every day all along the stage. I dedicate the win to my mother, who is not feeling good health.

 

"I knew I had not many chances in this Tirreno-Adriatico, looking to the race book. Today's stage was not suited for many riders in the peloton, maybe five or six, including me.

 

"Before Tirreno-Adriatico we said that this stage is very good for me and I wanted to do well in it. I'm happy I've hit the target. Now the first important part of my season is coming , the Classics' season, starting from Milano-Sanremo. To perform like this is a big boost of confidence.

 

“The finale was really confusing. Everybody wanted to be in the front today starting from the last 10 km. Longo Borghini took me to leading position at 3 km to go.  It was not easy to stay there. I’ve lost some positions before the uphill and dropped back to about 10th place 

 

"Then I saw [Daniele] Bennati, who was moving up before we reached the final climb. I followed his wheel and moved up into about 6th place. We rode the climb fast from start to finish, which was good for me.

 

"I was on the front with 4 or 5 very strong riders - Gilbert, Kwiatkowski, Clarke, and one or two others. When Gilbert attacked there were still 350 or 400 m to go. It was too early. He attacked too early, which was good for me because he effectively pulled the sprint for me.

 

"When I feel good, I don't worry about what other riders are doing but you have to understand who is strong so you can decide who to follow in the sprint.

 

“It’s important because now I know my condition is growing. My objective is to ride Milano-Sanremo well. Whether or not I win, I want to do it well there. It’s important to me. You win some and you lose some, but what matters is to perform to the best of your ability. I feel very good, I’m happy to have won this stage, I thank my team.

 

"Every year is a different race and every year Milan-San Remo changes, too. For sure my goal is to do well. If I win or not I want to give my all - that's the most important thing. You can always win or lose. I want to do my best."

 

You can read our preview of stage 4 here.