March 11, 2013 (Porto Sant’Elpidio, Italy) – Another great success for Peter Sagan. Today Cannondale Pro Cycling’s Slovak Champion made it two at the Tirreno-Adriatico, claiming the sixth and penultimate stage (Porto Sant’Elpidio to Porto Sant’Elpidio, 209 km). The fifth win of the season came after a really hard day, not only due to the route but also for the weather. Sagan won thanks to a mix of power and intelligence.
The impeccable work by his teammates helped Sagan to stay in the first group, just behind the break. When former teammate Vincenzo Nibali attacked, Sagan followed and, with Rodriguez, arrived to the finish line.
“It was a difficult win on a hard day,” affirmed Sagan. “I didn’t feel really good in the morning, also because to the effort in 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. We decided to get in front of the bunch because we saw a good opportunity for a result.
“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.”
Sagan reserved his final comment to discuss his latest victory salute, kisses to his biceps: “Today I needed these 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!”.
With today’s success Sagan claims the sixth win of the season for Cannondale Pro Cycling, while his personal palmares since 2010 (first year as professional) arrived at 41 wins.
Results (brief)
1. Peter Sagan (Svk) Cannondale Pro Cycling 5:45:17
2. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team 0:02
3. Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Esp) Katusha
4. Mauro Santambrogio (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia 0:44
5. Samuel Sanchez Gonzalez (Esp) Euskaltel-Euskadi
6. Christopher Horner (USA) RadioShack Leopard
7. Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
8. Jurgen Roelandts (Bel) Lotto Belisol 0:50
9. Thor Hushovd (Nor) BMC Racing Team
10. Simon Geschke (Ger) Team Argos-Shimano
DNS Svein Tuft (Can) Orica GreenEDGE
GC after Stage 6
1. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team 57:26
2. Christopher Froome (Gbr) Sky Procycling 0:34
3. Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Esp) Katusha 0:37
4. Alberto Contador Velasco (Esp) Team Saxo-Tinkoff 0:48
5. Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) Omega Pharma-Quick Step 0:58
6. Christopher Horner (USA) RadioShack Leopard 1:05
7. Mauro Santambrogio (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia 1:20
8. Przemyslaw Niemiec (Pol) Lampre-Merida 2:54
9. Andrey Amador Bakkazakova (Crc) Movistar Team 2:58
10. Wouter Poels (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team 3:08