Miguel Angel Lopez of Astana has won the 97th Milan-Torino race in Italy.
The first race of the “Autumn Triptych” is cycling's oldest competition, dating from 1876. This year's edition started this morning at the commune of San Giuliano Milanese. It finishes this afternoon, after 186km, at the Basilica on the beautiful Superga, the hill that overlooks the city of Turin.
The list of 142 riders featured some big name riders with Grand Tour stage victories and many prestigious classic races in their palmares, including: Purito Rodriguez, Rafal Majka (second last year), Wout Poels (fifth in 2015), Diego Ulissi (winner in 2013), the Colombians Darwin Atapuma and Rigoberto Uran, the Spaniards Mikel Landa and Dani Moreno, the Frenchmen Romain Bardet and Warren Barguil in addition to the many Italian riders such as Giovanni Visconti, Damiano Cunego, Michele Scarponi, Domenico Pozzovivo, Davide Formolo and Adriano Malori.
De Marchi, Grosu from Nippo Vini Fantini and Peter Kennaugh from Team Sky were the ones in the break and they were allowed a lead of eleven minutes before they were pulled back.
At average speeds of 46kmh, the peloton started to pull them back and going into the final forty kilometres, the gap was down to six minutes but down to 2.19 fifteen kilometres later.
De Marchi and Grusu were shelled as Kennaugh ploughed on with a lead of 1.20 and 22kms to go.
The pursuit of Kennaugh was relentless and the Manx man was hanging on with a handful of seconds from a peloton which was about forty strong with ten kilometres remaining.
Two kilometres later and Kennaugh was caught and his team mate Mikel Landa led a group of eleven riders ahead of the main body of the peloton.
Onto the Superga climb, which became a pilgrimage destination for the fans of Torino FC every year, on May 4, since 1949. A memorial stone (which can be reached from the path running left of the building) was erected at the back of the Basilica, to commemorate the “Grande Torino”, the great team that fell victim to an air disaster on the hill of Superga, while flying back home after a game in Lisbon.
The climb up to the Basilica di Superga. is 4.9kms long with average gradients of 9.1% with a maximum of 14% and it was Michael Woods of Cannondale who led going up the climb.
Lopez of Astana got up to Woods as Bardet of AG2R dragged up what was left of the peloton eleven seconds behind.
That duo were 26 seconds clear going under the flam rouge, so Michael Woods attacked but Miguel Angel Lopez went away and took the win in 4.13.36 with Woods second and Uran third. Moreno ws fourth with Ulissi fifth.
Source: DSG
