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Petacchi wins his third; Noe keeps Giro lead
Finish-line tumble doesn't affect GC, but Thursday's killer might
This is the Alessandro Petacchi we all remember, the world-class sprinter delivered to the line by a well-orchestrated machine of a lead-out team and fending off a field of the world’s best over the last meters of a stage. It’s enough to make a guy forget the last 12 months.
The Milram sprint star earned his third stage win of the 2007 Giro d’Italia Wednesday, roaring to the line in a full-bore drag race to the finish in Pinerolo and beating the likes of Gabriele Balducci (Acqua e Sapone), long-time rival Robbie McEwen, Thor Hushovd (Crédit Agricole) and Lampre’s Danilo Napolitano in the process.
The win came at the end of a flat, 198km 11th stage from Serravalle Scrivia to Pinerolo. Despite a finish-line tumble, 38-year-old Andrea Noe (Liquigas) maintained his hold on the maglia rosa and his run as the oldest-ever race leader of the Giro d’Italia.
For Petacchi, the victory, his 22nd in Italy’s national tour, puts his disastrous, injury-plagued 2006 season further behind him. It also has him thinking about the road ahead and hinting that he may drop out of the Giro ahead of Thursday’s tough mountainous stage into Briançon, France.
"I've been training since October 30 and I'm feeling tired, even mentally I'm tired,” said Petacchi. “There is a long way to go in the season with the Tour de France and the Vuelta. I’m just happy to have won three stages here. I’m sprinting well again.”
While Petacchi celebrated, a large group of riders coming into the finish less than a second behind the winner crashed on the slippery pavement, with several skidding across the line and at least one landing in the hospital.
Among the casualties were world and Olympic champion Paolo Bettini of Quick Step and overall race leader Andrea Noe (Liquigas). Shaken up and bruised, the pair escaped from the mêlée relatively unhurt. Not so fortunate was Tinkoff’s Aitor Hernandez, who suffered a broken collarbone.
Petacchi, a frequent critic of the Giro’s habit of including narrow and technical finishes on several flat stages, said he was happy that he avoided Wednesday’s crash in a stage where he actually appreciated the design of the finish.
“It was wide and straight and fast,” he said. “It was the rain that made it slippery.”
A long and lonely road
With Thursday’s mountainous stage looming ahead, the peloton was in no mood to push the pace on Wednesday. Soon after the remaining 171 riders rolled out of Serravalle Scrivia at noon, it became clear that few were even interested in trying to make a break and keep things interesting.
Indeed, the pace over the opening half hour was just around 25kph, a figure that bumped up to 30 after the first hour of “racing.” To be sure, there were a couple of digs off the front, but it wasn’t until around 38km that Cofidis’s Mickaël Buffaz managed to get a gap, shed some unenthusiastic company and begin a long, seemingly futile ride toward the finish in Pinerolo.
The terrain didn’t offer too much of a challenge for the 28-year-old Frenchman, with just two relatively easy, unrated climbs along the way. Behind him the peloton showed little interest in putting in a big chase. Noe’s Liquigas team made a brief appearance at the front, but the pace for much of the day hovered between 30 and 32kph.
Buffaz, too, had an easy – although long – ride. It wasn’t until the 140km mark, by which point Buffaz had extended his lead to nearly nine-and-a-half minutes, that the sprinters’ teams began to show an interest in the chase. First Lampre moved to the fore, upping the pace to a still-relaxed 37kph. Bettini’s Quick Step team, McEwen’s Predictor-Lotto squad and the blue jerseys of Milram eventually all joined in and Buffaz was finally reeled in some 16km outside of Pinerolo.
By the time of the catch, the pace had picked up significantly. With powerhouse teams driving at the front, the peloton coursed through the closing kilometer at between 55 and 60kph.
Prime real estate
One sign that Petacchi is back in form is that there is an increasing intensity in the fight to grab the coveted spot on his wheel. It’s a vote of confidence that not only does Milram offer “Ale-Jet” a good lead-out, Petacchi is now in shape to take full advantage.
Lampre’s Napolitano is one the biggest riders in the peloton. Over the course of the closing 5km, he could be seen tussling with McEwen in an effort to get in Petacchi’s draft. To his credit, the slightly built McEwen was not about to be pushed around. He kept his spot.
As the peloton neared the 3km-to-go mark, Bettini’s Quick Step team surged to the front, perhaps in hopes of launching the world champ in an early charge over the day’s final hurdle, an easy climb before the 1km drop to the finish line. Milram, however, was prepared, and as Bettini’s team moved up, Petacchi’s team stepped up the pace and powered through the small rise.
While others continued to fight for his wheel, Petacchi stayed right where he belonged and waited until his last lead-out man peeled off with 200 meters to go. Timing his move to perfection, Petacchi punched it and stayed ahead of the big surge from his challengers. It was a classic Petacchi lead-out and closer.
As Petacchi punched the air in celebration, a series of riders began slipping and falling on the wet road. All told, 15 riders hit the deck, with only minor injuries suffered by most; Hernandez’s broken collarbone was the worst of the bunch.Buffaz, meanwhile, did get some reward for his efforts. Wednesday's move represents the third time he went out on the attack in this Giro. As a result, he has moved up the standings in the Giro's Trofeo Fuga Gilera, the contest for the rider who spends the most time in a break. Buffaz vaulted past a trio of Tinkoff riders and now leads that contest with a total of 345km, ahead of Tinkoff's Mikhail Ignatiev, with 314.
The road ahead
Thursday's 163km 12th stage between Scalenghe and the French town of Briancon has many riders reassessing any plans they had of finishing the Giro in Milan on June 3. Some had long ago planned to pull out.
Among those leaving after Wednesday's stage is American George Hincapie. A spokesman for the U.S. road champion's Discovery Channel team said Hincapie is focusing his attention on the Tour de France this year and has opted to pull out of this, his first Giro.
Hincapie "is at 100 percent," said Discovery PR man PJ Rabice, "but (he) does not want to overdo it in Italy as his big goal is to be ready to go for the Tour de France. To continue onto Milan would have likely been too much, given that he has only raced the Tours of California and Georgia so far this year. Looking at the upcoming terrain and the intensity in the peloton these days, 10 days here turned out to be just right and was very good training for him as he prepares for the Tour."
Hincapie will return to his home in Girona, Spain, and prepare to ride in France's traditional Tour warm-up, the Dauphiné Libéré.
Stage 11 - Results
1. Alessandro Petacchi (I), Milram, 198km in 5:46:59 (34.237kph)
2. Gabriele Balducci (I), Acqua & Sapone - Adria Mobil
3. Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus), Predictor-Lotto
4. Thor Hushovd (Nor), Credit Agricole
5. Danilo Napolitano (I), Lampre
6. Angelo Furlan (I), Credit Agricole
7. Koldo Fernandez (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi
8. Aliaksandr Usau (Blr), Ag2r Prevoyance
9. Robert Forster (G), Gerolsteiner
10. Enrico Gasparotto (I), Liquigas, all same time
Overall, after stage 11
1. Andrea Noe' (I), Liquigas, 0:00
2. Marzio Bruseghin (I), Lampre, 1:08
3. David Arroyo Duran (Sp), Caisse d'Epargne, 1:15
4. Francisco J. Vila Errandonea (Sp), Lampre, 1:38
5. Evgeni Petrov (Rus), TCS, 1:48
6. Emanuele Sella (I), Ceramica Panaria - Navigare, 2:04
7. Serguei Yakovlev (Kaz), Astana, 2:06
8. Danilo Di Luca (I), Liquigas, 2:58
9. Marco Pinotti (I), T-Mobile, 3:11
10. José Luis Rubiera Vigil (Sp), Discovery Channel, 3:22
