Podium cafe posted this great finish of Milan San Remo from 1992 where Sean Kelly bombed down the Poggio to catch Moreno Argentin just as he passed the final kilometer to go. Argentin was crushed when he saw Kelly on his wheel and knew that he could not match Kelly’s sprinting. The crowd gasps when they hear that Kelly caught Argentin. A home boy victory was being taken away by the tough Sean Kelly. The commentary is absolutely horrible as we have to be told that there are two chain rings in the front and the commentator is excited more about the Formula One race in Mexico where Nigel Mansell set a pole position than what was unfolding in front of him.

Next up is the first Zabel victory on the Via Roma. This will be the first of six consecutive wins. Zabel had the perfect combo of sprinting ability and climbing skill to stick with the large group and win the sprint.

After all of the sprint finishes Paolo Bettini was able to get a little group away With the brilliant work of his teammate Luca Paolini, Bettini was able to easily overpower Mirko Celestino and take the win.

Milan San Remo was returned to the domain of the field sprint Saturday as Oscar Friere ripped the field of top sprinters to take a convincing second overall victory. There was no photo finish and now bike throw to beat a guy who thought he won (Zabel). This time the victory was pretty clear. Friere took advantage of the Milram sprint train and a fast fading Alessandro Petacchi. Staying on Petacchi’s wheel for the sprint down the Via Roma is probably the best spot in the peloton. Especially this year as Petacchi does not seem to have the extra speed he usually does. He is perhaps still suffering from the knee injury incurred at the Giro D’Italia last year. Petacchi has managed a few victories, but he does not have the same form that puts the Jet in AleJet.

The sprinter teams of Lampre (Bennati), Milram (Petacchi) and Quick Step(Boonen) did a great deal of work to bring back the escapes and manage to keep a large pack together for the final run in to the Via Roma. Riccardo Ricco’s brilliant attack with Phillippe Gilbert looked very threatening especially after Ricco’s two stage victories at Tirreno Adriatico. Ricco promised to do well in San Remo, and it looked like he was going for a very impressive victory when he was able to get a gap with Gilbert after the top of the Poggio heading down to San Remo. Ricco was so detemined to attack that he slipped through a small gap between Gilbert and a wall to get ahead and attack. His attack dropped a third breakaway companion in Mattiaus Kessler.
With only two kilometers to go the break was swept up, but not before Ricco provided his much promised fireworks.

Paolo Bettini performed well working for Tom Boonen. Betting was riding with pain after several crashes at Tirreno Adriatico left him in less than ideal form. But Bettini rides with his heart and he was very instrumental in working for Boonen, helping bring down the gaps. This paid off in a second place for Boonen. Does this mean that Boonen will now help Paolo at Flanders? Hmmm.

Liquigas sent a few attacks up the road with Manuel Quinzato and Oscar Pellizotti. Those two showed good form and could have been paving the way for Pozzatto. Pozzatto never launched any serious attack and did not repeat.

Yaroslav Popovych looked like he was feeling good after launching repeated attacks. Popovych is on form after a stage win at Paris-Nice and looked to do some damage at San Remo. His wok eventually paid off with a third place for Disco sprinter Allan Davis.

Gerolsteiner received some publicity, but not from an attack, but from riders writhing in pain in the middle of the road. Gerolsteiner guys had a few crashes that left them smarting form the pain for a while. Milan San Remo is know for bad crashes, but the poor Gerolsteiner team seems to have had more than their fair share of men on the pavement. David Kopp and Andrea Moletta suffered a broken thigh which could be the end of his season. His misjudging of a corner and crash into a lamppost was caught perfectly by the RAI coverage. David Kopp got away with a broken nose and facial injuries from a crash scene that looked much worse. Not moving much and blood on the pavement was a scary site to see. Luckily he came away with mere flesh wounds.

Now Oscar Friere can enjoy his great form and great victory at San Remo. The finish line pic is now focusing on Friere instead of a bewildered Zabel realizing he threw his hands up too soon.

Scroll to the end for the full start list for Milan-San Remo from tuttobiciweb.com

Filippo Pozzato gets the number one for being defending champ. Danilo DiLuca will not be lining up at the start due to the flu. Liquigas have a strong lineup featureing Enrico Gasparotto and Franco Pellizotti.

Tom Boonen and Paolo Bettini will be ready, but their recent form does not indicate that they will put in a spectacular performance. Bettini and Boonen are “gamer” type riders who get up for the big races. So it will not be a surprise to see these two in a good position on the Via Roma. I would not bet against the killer “B”s.

Alessandro Petacchi seems to be the biggest question mark. He did not perform at Tirreno-Adriatico. The final stage was nixed for Petacchi due to a close call with a crash. The Milram train does not seem to be running on all cylinders so far this year, but they could get going just in time for the San Remo run in.

The way most races have gone this year it seems that it is not a year for sprinters. Tirreno Adriatico was and Paris-Nice did not have many classic field sprints meaning that the sprint teams are not running well overall. For this reason I just do not see a field sprint of a large number of riders coming into the Via Roma this year. There are so many contenders who can probably get a gap on the Poggio or Cipressa. If this gap sticks down to the Via Roma will be the question.

The one wildcard is Riccardo Ricco. The young Italian won two stages at Tirreno-Adriatico and is young enough to think he has a good chance at Sam Remo. I would look to Ricco to animate the climbs probably launching a good number of attacks trying to make one stick.

Then we get back to Liquigas. Their performances so far this year have been so good that Paul Sherwan stopped calling them Leeky-gas. With Pozzato’s win at Het Volk, DiLuca’s win at Milano-Torino and Pellizotti’s stage win at Paris-Nice this team is on a roll. Each of the wins were very smart well timed attacks. If you count momentum Liquigas has it, so maybe it is Gasparotto’s turn to get a victory.

So Velochimp’s two favorites for overall victory on the Via Roma at Riccardo Ricco and Enrico Gasparotto. Milan San Remo is always

1 1 ITA19810910 POZZATO Filippo 1981 ITA LIQ LIQUIGAS
2 2 SUI19770705 CALCAGNI Patrick 1977 SUI LIQ LIQUIGAS
3 3 ITA19820322 GASPAROTTO Enrico 1982 ITA LIQ LIQUIGAS
4 4 ITA19770117 PAOLINI Luca 1977 ITA LIQ LIQUIGAS
5 5 ITA19780115 PELLIZOTTI Franco 1978 ITA LIQ LIQUIGAS
6 6 ITA19710201 PETITO Roberto 1971 ITA LIQ LIQUIGAS
7 7 ITA19791030 QUINZIATO Manuel 1979 ITA LIQ LIQUIGAS
8 8 ITA19750114 SPEZIALETTI Alessandro 1975 ITA LIQ LIQUIGAS

9 11 ITA19721025 ANDRIOTTO Dario 1972 ITA ASA ACQUA & SAPONE – CAFFE’ MOKAMBO
10 12 ITA19751103 BALDUCCI Gabriele 1975 ITA ASA ACQUA & SAPONE – CAFFE’ MOKAMBO
11 13 ITA19730227 CODOL Massimo 1973 ITA ASA ACQUA & SAPONE – CAFFE’ MOKAMBO
12 14 ITA19790508 DONATI Alessandro 1979 ITA ASA ACQUA & SAPONE – CAFFE’ MOKAMBO
13 15 ITA19730716 GARZELLI Stefano 1973 ITA ASA ACQUA & SAPONE – CAFFE’ MOKAMBO
14 16 BLR19840702 KUNITSKI Andrei 1984 BLR ASA ACQUA & SAPONE – CAFFE’ MOKAMBO
15 17 ITA19800102 MASCIARELLI Simone 1980 ITA ASA ACQUA & SAPONE – CAFFE’ MOKAMBO
16 18 ITA19750910 PALUMBO Giuseppe 1975 ITA ASA ACQUA & SAPONE – CAFFE’ MOKAMBO

17 21 ITA19770925 NOCENTINI Rinaldo 1977 ITA A2R AG2R PREVOYANCE
18 22 FRA19790701 CALZATI Sylvain 1979 FRA A2R AG2R PREVOYANCE
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20 24 FRA19800820 DUMOULIN Samuel 1980 FRA A2R AG2R PREVOYANCE
21 25 SUI19780923 ELMIGER Martin 1978 SUI A2R AG2R PREVOYANCE
22 26 UKR19790207 KRIVTSOV Yuriy 1979 UKR A2R AG2R PREVOYANCE
23 27 FRA19820426 MONDORY Lloyd 1982 FRA A2R AG2R PREVOYANCE
24 28 FRA19770118 NAZON Jean-Patrick 1977 FRA A2R AG2R PREVOYANCE

25 31 NED19820908 DE KORT Koen 1982 NED AST ASTANA
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32 38 SUI19800117 RAST Grégory 1980 SUI AST ASTANA

33 41 ITA19781021 BONOMI Giosuè 1978 ITA BAR BARLOWORLD
34 42 ITA19810731 CACCIA Diego 1981 ITA BAR BARLOWORLD
35 43 ITA19760311 DEGANO Enrico 1976 ITA BAR BARLOWORLD
36 44 RUS19811202 EFIMKIN Alexander 1981 RUS BAR BARLOWORLD
37 45 ITA19720413 GUIDI Fabrizio 1972 ITA BAR BARLOWORLD
38 46 RSA19770422 HUNTER Robert 1977 RSA BAR BARLOWORLD
39 47 ITA19801210 LONGO BORGHINI Paolo 1980 ITA BAR BARLOWORLD
40 48 BLR19820809 SIUTSOU Kanstantsin 1982 BLR BAR BARLOWORLD

41 51 ESP19791226 FLORENCIO Xavier 1979 ESP BTL BOUYGUES TELECOM
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45 55 FRA19800102 PINEAU Jérome 1980 FRA BTL BOUYGUES TELECOM
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47 57 FRA19740411 RENIER Franck 1974 FRA BTL BOUYGUES TELECOM
48 58 FRA19790622 VOECKLER Thomas 1979 FRA BTL BOUYGUES TELECOM

49 61 ESP19810730 REYNES Vicente 1981 ESP GCE CAISSE D’EPARGNE
50 62 FRA19800123 BERTHOU Eric 1980 FRA GCE CAISSE D’EPARGNE
51 63 RUS19810212 EFIMKIN Vladimir 1981 RUS GCE CAISSE D’EPARGNE
52 64 ESP19831115 ERVITI Imanol 1983 ESP GCE CAISSE D’EPARGNE
53 65 ESP19781127 GUTIERREZ José Ivan 1978 ESP GCE CAISSE D’EPARGNE
54 66 ESP19760120 LASTRAS Pablo 1976 ESP GCE CAISSE D’EPARGNE
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56 68 ESP19850608 ROJAS GIL Jose Joaquin 1985 ESP GCE CAISSE D’EPARGNE

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58 72 ITA19830726 DALL’ANTONIA Tiziano 1983 ITA PAN CERAMICA PANARIA – NAVIGARE
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60 74 ITA19740204 MAZZANTILuca 1974 ITA PAN CERAMICA PANARIA – NAVIGARE
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62 76 ITA19850519 TOMEI Francesco 1985 ITA PAN CERAMICA PANARIA – NAVIGARE
63 77 ARG19830307 RICHEZE Axel Maximiliano 1983 ARG PAN CERAMICA PANARIA – NAVIGARE
64 78 ITA19810109 SELLA Emanuele 1981 ITA PAN CERAMICA PANARIA – NAVIGARE

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66 82 NED19820831 ELIJZEN Michiel 1982 NED COF COFIDIS, LE CREDIT P. TELEPHONE
67 83 NED19820204 HEIJBOER Mathieu 1982 NED COF COFIDIS, LE CREDIT P. TELEPHONE
68 84 FRA19810630 LEQUATRE Geoffroy 1981 FRA COF COFIDIS, LE CREDIT P. TELEPHONE
69 85 FRA19820612 MINARD Sébastien 1982 FRA COF COFIDIS, LE CREDIT P. TELEPHONE
70 86 ITA19721121 MORENI Cristian 1972 ITA COF COFIDIS, LE CREDIT P. TELEPHONE
71 87 BEL19800505 NUYENS Nick 1980 BEL COF COFIDIS, LE CREDIT P. TELEPHONE
72 88 BEL19790312 SCHEIRLINKCX Staf 1979 BEL COF COFIDIS, LE CREDIT P. TELEPHONE

73 91 ITA19790806 BELLOTTI Francesco 1979 ITA C.A CREDIT AGRICOLE
74 92 HUN19761211 BODROGI Laszlo 1976 HUN C.A CREDIT AGRICOLE
75 93 FRA19820625 BONNET William 1982 FRA C.A CREDIT AGRICOLE
76 94 NZL19750128 DEAN Julian 1975 NZL C.A CREDIT AGRICOLE
77 95 NOR19770222 KAGGESTAD Mads 1977 NOR C.A CREDIT AGRICOLE
78 96 FRA19740211 HINAULT Sébastien 1974 FRA C.A CREDIT AGRICOLE
79 97 NOR19780118 HUSHOVD Thor 1978 NOR C.A CREDIT AGRICOLE
80 98 FRA19770726 LAURENT Christophe 1977 FRA C.A CREDIT AGRICOLE

81 101 UKR19790206 BILEKA Volodymyr 1979 UKR DSC DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO C.T.
82 102 GBR19810319 CUMMINGS Steven 1981 GBR DSC DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO C.T.
83 103 AUS19800727 DAVIS Allan 1980 AUS DSC DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO C.T.
84 104 RUS19820704 GUSEV Vladimir 1982 RUS DSC DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO C.T.
85 105 CZE19701217 PADRNOS Pavel 1970 CZE DSC DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO C.T.
86 106 UKR19800104 POPOVYCH Yaroslav 1980 UKR DSC DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO C.T.
87 107 LTU19820204 VAITKUS Tomas 1982 LTU DSC DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO C.T.
88 108 AUS19740222 WHITE Matthew 1974 AUS DSC DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO C.T.

89 111 ESP19810517 ALBIZURI ABenat 1981 ESP EUS EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI
90 112 ESP19791117 ASTARLOZA Mikel 1979 ESP EUS EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI
91 113 ESP19771018 BRU PASCAL Yon 1977 ESP EUS EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI
92 114 VEN19721121 ETXEBARRIA Unai 1972 VEN EUS EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI
93 115 ESP19810913 FERNANDEZ Koldo 1981 ESP EUS EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI
94 116 ESP19820517 HERNANDEZ Aitor 1982 ESP EUS EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI
95 117 ESP19810304 PENA IZA Aketza 1981 ESP EUS EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI
96 118 ESP19780205 SANCHEZ Samuel 1978 ESP EUS EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI

97 121 FRA19710217 AUGER Ludovic 1971 FRA FDJ FRANÇAISE DES JEUX
98 122 BEL19740503 DETILLOU Christophe 1974 BEL FDJ FRANÇAISE DES JEUX
99 123 FRA19840610 GERARD Arnaud 1984 FRA FDJ FRANÇAISE DES JEUX
100 124 BEL19820705 GILBERT Philippe 1982 BEL FDJ FRANÇAISE DES JEUX
101 125 FRA19711014 GUESDON Frédéric 1971 FRA FDJ FRANÇAISE DES JEUX
102 126 BEL19730613 MARICHAL Thierry 1973 BEL FDJ FRANÇAISE DES JEUX
103 127 FRA19680903 MENGIN Christophe 1968 FRA FDJ FRANÇAISE DES JEUX
104 128 FRA19830824 MONNERAY Cyrille 1983 FRA FDJ FRANÇAISE DES JEUX

105 131 GER19840225 HAUSSLER Heinrich 1984 GER GST GEROLSTEINER
106 132 GER19790105 KOPP David 1979 GER GST GEROLSTEINER
107 133 ITA19790223 MOLETTA Andrea 1979 ITA GST GEROLSTEINER
108 134 ITA19710809 REBELLIN Davide 1971 ITA GST GEROLSTEINER
109 135 GER19810721 SCHUMACHER Stefan 1981 GER GST GEROLSTEINER
110 136 GER19800620 WEGMANN Fabian 1980 GER GST GEROLSTEINER
111 137 AUT19740530 WROLICH Peter 1974 AUT GST GEROLSTEINER
112 138 SUI19740627 ZBERG Marcus 1974 SUI GST GEROLSTEINER

113 141 ITA19791106 BALLAN Alessandro 1979 ITA LAM LAMPRE – FONDITAL
114 142 ITA19800924 BENNATI Daniele 1980 ITA LAM LAMPRE – FONDITAL
115 143 ITA19810131 NAPOLITANO Danilo 1981 ITA LAM LAMPRE – FONDITAL
116 144 ITA19680613 BALDATO Fabio 1968 ITA LAM LAMPRE – FONDITAL
117 145 ITA19821226 CORIONI Claudio 1982 ITA LAM LAMPRE – FONDITAL
118 146 ITA19760328 RIGHI Daniele 1976 ITA LAM LAMPRE – FONDITAL
119 147 SLO19730127 STANGELJ Gorazd 1973 SLO LAM LAMPRE – FONDITAL
120 148 ESP19751011 VILA ERRANDONEA Francisco J. 1975 ESP LAM LAMPRE – FONDITAL

121 151 BEL19741231 AERTS Mario 1974 BEL PRL PREDICTOR – LOTTO
122 152 BEL19770717 HOSTE Leif 1977 BEL PRL PREDICTOR – LOTTO
123 153 AUS19720624 MCEWEN Robbie 1972 AUS PRL PREDICTOR – LOTTO
124 154 USA19730903 RODRIGUEZ Fred 1973 USA PRL PREDICTOR – LOTTO
125 155 BEL19711223 VANSEVENANT Wim 1971 BEL PRL PREDICTOR – LOTTO
126 156 BEL19810204 VAN SUMMEREN Johan 1981 BEL PRL PREDICTOR – LOTTO
127 157 ITA19690123 ZANINI Stefano 1969 ITA PRL PREDICTOR – LOTTO
128 158 ITA19741202 CIONI Dario David 1974 ITA PRL PREDICTOR – LOTTO

129 161 ITA19740401 BETTINI Paolo 1974 ITA QSI QUICKSTEP – INNERGETIC
130 162 ESP19810605 BARREDO Carlos 1981 ESP QSI QUICKSTEP – INNERGETIC
131 163 BEL19801015 BOONEN Tom 1980 BEL QSI QUICKSTEP – INNERGETIC
132 164 BEL19780411 HULSMAN Kevin 1978 BEL QSI QUICKSTEP – INNERGETIC
133 165 BEL19810715 ROSSELER Sébastien 1981 BEL QSI QUICKSTEP – INNERGETIC
134 166 ITA19740514 TOSATTO Matteo 1974 ITA QSI QUICKSTEP – INNERGETIC
135 167 BEL19810419 VAN IMPE Kevin 1981 BEL QSI QUICKSTEP – INNERGETIC
136 168 ITA19830113 VISCONTI Giovanni 1983 ITA QSI QUICKSTEP – INNERGETIC

137 171 NED19720228 BOVEN Jan 1972 NED RAB RABOBANK
138 172 ESP19770917 FLECHA GJuan Antonio 1977 ESP RAB RABOBANK
139 173 ESP19760215 FREIRE GOOscar 1976 ESP RAB RABOBANK
140 174 NED19741218 DE GROOT Bram 1974 NED RAB RABOBANK
141 175 ESP19740927 HORRILLO Pedro 1974 ESP RAB RABOBANK
142 176 AUS19780420 HAYMAN Mathew 1978 AUS RAB RABOBANK
143 177 NED19720128 VAN BON Leon 1972 NED RAB RABOBANK
144 178 NED19730302 VAN HEESWIJK Max 1973 NED RAB RABOBANK

145 181 GBR19770104 MILLAR David 1977 GBR SDV SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR
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147 183 ESP19820316 DEL NERO Jesus 1982 ESP SDV SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR
148 184 ESP19810513 GOMEZ Angel 1981 ESP SDV SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR
149 185 ESP19811114 BENITEZ RJose Alberto 1981 ESP SDV SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR
150 186 ITA19800809 MORI Manuele 1980 ITA SDV SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR
151 187 ITA19830901 RICCO’ Riccardo 1983 ITA SDV SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR
152 188 ESP19820506 VENTOSO Francisco J. 1982 ESP SDV SAUNIER DUVAL – PRODIR

153 191 LUX19800415 SCHLECK Frank 1980 LUX CSC TEAM CSC
154 192 NED19760129 KROON Karsten 1976 NED CSC TEAM CSC
155 193 SUI19810318 CANCELLARA Fabian 1981 SUI CSC TEAM CSC
156 194 SWE19741026 LJUNGQVIST Marcus 1974 SWE CSC TEAM CSC
157 195 ARG19810126 HAEDO Juan José 1981 ARG CSC TEAM CSC
158 196 AUS19730806 O’GRADY Stuart 1973 AUS CSC TEAM CSC
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160 198 DEN19840831 BRESCHEL Matti 1984 DEN CSC TEAM CSC

161 201 SLO19800808 BOZICHZ Borut 1980 SLO LPR TEAM L.P.R.
162 202 ITA19840211 MARCATO Marco 1984 ITA LPR TEAM L.P.R.
163 203 ESP19740618 GUTIERREZ José E. 1974 ESP LPR TEAM L.P.R.
164 204 ESP19771201 GUTIERREZ Ignacio 1977 ESP LPR TEAM L.P.R.
165 205 ITA19791002 SOLARI Luca 1979 ITA LPR TEAM L.P.R.
166 206 ITA19820402 BELLIN Maurizio 1982 ITA LPR TEAM L.P.R.
167 207 ITA19840923 TRAFICANTE Roberto 1984 ITA LPR TEAM L.P.R.
168 208 SUI19821015 DIETZIKER Andreas 1982 SUI LPR TEAM L.P.R.

169 211 ITA19740103 PETACCHI Alessandro 1974 ITA MRM TEAM MILRAM
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197 245 BEL19800317 GARDEYN Gorik 1980 BEL UNI UNIBET.COM
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199 247 ITA19740121 ZANOTTI Marco 1974 ITA UNI UNIBET.COM
200 248 GBR19740312 HUNT Jeremy 1974 GBR UNI UNIBET.COM

The most impressive aspect of Pippo Pozzato’s win, was the cold calculation (as described by Bob Roll) with which he waited before launching his attack. This may be a case where radio contact helps play out the finish. My guess is that Pozzato may have gotten the all clear from Boonen when the sprint did not look to unfold to the World Champ’s favor.
Pozzato was watching the breakaway deflate just in time for the sprinters to take the final charge to the line. Milram still had their team working, but Quick Step had riders everywhere expect in front of Boonen. Boonen’s tactic seemed to be just to stay on Petacchi’s wheel and go around if possible.

Pozzato stayed out long enough and was in a great position to launch a final sprint just ahead of the charging peloton. Pozzato did not look back to the charging sprint when he lauched his attack leading me to believe that he was instructed by either Boonen or Lefevre to go for the win. Petacchi came in just a few bike lengths behind in frustration at not being able to catch the young Italian at the line.

Quick Step’s tactics for the race were a risk, but played out perfectly. Everyone expected Quick Step to have their Treno Blue working side by side with Milram and Rabobank to help deliver the race to the Via Roma in a bunch finish. Quick Stp put pressure on Rabobank and Milram by constantly putting riders out to cover breaks and make Boonen shadow Petacchi until the finale. The end result was a brilliantly orchestrated team win. Pozzato is definately a deserving champion, but he certainly should thank his super teammates Bettini and Boonen.

Paolo Bettini put in a great performance to guide the peloton through the Cipressa and bring things together enough for the next break. Although he probably did not have the snap to launch an effective attack on the Poggio he showed that he is well on hs way to a full recovery and should be ready for the Tour of Flanders.

Luca Paolini is coming out of Bettini’s shadow with a scrappy third place. I say scrappy because he threw his bike to beat a celebrating Boonen. Paolini will be ready for more at the Tour of Flanders and the rest of the Spring Classics.

You have to feel for Ballan and Astarloa. They put themselves in the decisive break on the Poggio and had a good gap heading into the Via Roma finish. The only problem is that Pozzato’s effective covering of the break and the cat-and-muse tactics of the entire break doomed them to pack fodder. Too bad they could not organize anything more effective or at leats get rid of Pozzato somehow. Pozzato was too strong after not having to take a pull and feeling no pressure since his thought was more on working for Boonen than chasing personal glory. In the end Pozzato was in the right position and probably got the signal from the radio telling him to go for it.

The feast of San Giuseppe is traditional day that San Remo used to be raced on. That day to Americans is known as the day after St. Patrick’s Day. Usually San Remo was raced on the Saturday around St. Giuseppe. This year, San Remo is raced on that day, which would probably mean an Italian victory. Petacchi? Bettini? Astarloa (he is a wannabe Italian)?

Anyway, the anticipation is heating up as websites everywhere have to have some sort of word on the race. The anticipation this year is more intense due to the rivalry that is shaping up between Alessandro Petacchi and Tom Boonen. Since the World Championships in Madrid ended with a dejected Petacchi and a somewhat surpising winner in Boonen, the rivalry was on. There may have been times when the two competed against each other in the past, but this year the competition between the two sprinters seems to take on a new level. They are both looking to win Milano San Remo and there was a bit of trash talking from Boonen who said that Petacchi was not very impressive in Tirreno Adriatico. Oh, snap! Not too intense, but that is as much trash as we are going to get outside of Robbie McEwen and Gilberto Simoni.

So the stage is set, everyone is looking to the two sprinters to duke it out on the Via Roma. This is assuming they make it past the Cipressa in a bunch. It almost seems like a forgone conclusion that the result should contain a man named Boonen and another named Petacchi, either one of which will occupy the top spot. Why even race the race, just have a match sprint in the last 200 meters of the Via Roma and be done with it, save everybodies time while we are at it.

Well, because San Remo’s finish is typically a lottery. Amazingly enough Erik Zabel was able to win 4 (should have been 5) times when the race finished in big sprints. After much hype Copillini won in 2003 The same hype followed Petacchi last year who finally claimed the win in dramtic Cipo style.

This year there seems to be a handful of outsiders that may want to trip up the race and win either in a chaotic bunch sprint or disrupt the finish. Paolo Bettini was in great form before a crash made him questionable to even race. Il Grillo is tough, and he will be at the start. Whether he can endure 7 hours in the saddle is another question. Pez Cycling has a good writeup on San Remo, and one thing that is noted by many of the past winners is that the racing typically does not start until 30 to 20km to go. Most of the rest is cruising along and letting a break go The final Capi that lead to the Cipressa and Poggio are where the difference is made in the race.

So, can Bettini endure the 6.5 hours of riding along and be able to turn up the heat when needed? A rider of Bettini’s style needs to constantly attack, which means he needs to be in top form. He cannot wait for a bunch sprint and will have to be very active on the Poggio. Riders go so fast up the climb that they must brake on the turns. It is a great site to see riders going up a climb at warp speed and almost clipping a turn while going up hill. That is the type of effort that is needed to get away. That is probably not in the cards for Bettini. Il Grillo will make a valiant effort to stay in the race. If he does make it to the end look for at least one crazy attack. But, I highly doubt that we will see him take the risk in the tight corners of the Poggio descent.

Igor Astarloa is coming back from the duldrums. He already won a race that started in Milano and ended in a city not far from San Remo, Milano Torino. The arrival of former team manager Claudio Corti helped revamp the team and get important invites to big races. The Spaniard’s beloved Classics are within reach again as Barloworld was invitied to many Northern Classics along with San Remo. This kind of rejuvanation results in great performances. Milano Torino was a bust out, now Astarloa could be the overlooked rider in the hypefest of San Remo. Many odds makers do no even put Astarloa as a top pick, buthe must be viewed as dangerous. He has the punchiness to get away and maintain a small lead going into the Via Roma finish. Races with this much hype often end with a surprise winner, so look for Adtarloa to spoil the sprint party.

Erik Zabel has been second too many times. He broke through in Paris Tour last fall with a somewhat surprising win. Being a true professional he will play the domestique to Petacchi who is on great form at the moment. But San Remo is unpredictable. If Petacchi get caught behind a crash or clips a corner, then Zabel has the chance.

THOR Hushovd pipped Petacch in Tirreno Adriatico. Petacchi attributed the loss to a botched sprint that was a result of poor team work. In Milan San Remo, anything can happen in the finale, if Hushovd is in the main bunch he could find a way around the top sprinters to spoil their party. Otherwise, in a straight no-mistake sprint, despite a third place last year, Hushovd simply will not be able to get around a Petacchi/ Boonen battle.

Oscar Friere caught the super professional Erik Zabel off guard before to claim a San Remo win. This year he is back in form and racing well with a stage win and yellow/red jersey win. San Remo may suit the Quad World Champion, but he is much like Hushovd in that he will not beat the Petacchi/ Boonen battle, so he needs to find another way around.

One factor that could go to Hushovd’s and Friere’s favor is that after almost 300km of racing, Boonen and Petacchi may not have the same snap to their sprint. But, as we saw last year, Petacchi was able to do his traditional windup to the finish and win a textbook sprint finsh. This year Petacchi is a few kilos lighter making the strain of the small climbs much easier to take.

So, it is picking time, what does Velochimp predict? It depends on the scenario. If there is a big bunch at the end, I would be certain that Quick Step and Milram will be working hard to keep their main men at the front. Then it would simply come down to a train vs. train sprint. I would give the edge to Petacchi. He has won the race before, he is a few kilos lighter and has Erik Zabel (a 4 time winner) as his leadout man. Plus, Boonen may be tired from flying back to Belgium and then receiving an award last night by Gazzetta Dello Sport the Oscar Gazzetta. Is this a subtle way for the Italians to tire out the powerful Belgian? They have been know to fly a helicopter a bit lower to slow down Laurent Fignon in a Giro Time Trial, so you never know.

If the race gets broken apart on the Poggio, I would look for a rider such as Igor Astarloa to mix things up and get the win. Bettini is simply too hurt, and I cannot imagine Paolo taking the chances on the Poggio descent to keep a small lead. If he is in form, he probably will not have the extra snap required to get a solo win.

Regardless of the outcome, the final 30k looks to provide excitement as riders unleash blistering attacks on a climb that regular folks like us would have trouble with. The best part of watching the race has to be seeing the riders go so fast up the Poggio that they have to brake on the turns. It seems as though the corners going up are just as dangerous as going down.

Usually it is the Southern Italians who have the hard heads. The Northern Italians are a little more reserved and precise. Paolo Bettini is from California which is considered Northern Italy, but he is digging out some Southern influences by showing how hard of a head he has by training for Milan San Remo after a brutal crash in Tirreno Adriatico.

Yesterday, Bettini took to the roads from his house to go training. After 1/2 hour he had to call his wife to pick him up because the pain was too much for Il Grillo to continue training. Bettini’s back, knee and hip are giving him trouble from the crash he suffered in Tirreno Adriatico. No broken bones or major injury, just some soreness from the crash and a few scrapes. But the pain is enough to make training very difficult.

Today, Bettini is showing that he is on his way to a quick recovery after spending two hours on the road which was followed up with a visit to the physiotherapist. The pain in his back and hips are still bothering Il Grillo, but he refuses to give up on the effort to get to the MSR start line.

“The crash still leaves me in pain, but my biggest concern is that I will be in the saddle for seven hours at Milan San Remo. I still believe I can be ready, tomorrow, I will rde for at least four hours. One thing is certain, on Friday I wlill be in Milan and on Saturday I will be at the start line of the race. Then, I will figure out how I will get to San Remo” — Bettini via TuttoBici

http://www.tuttobiciweb.com/home.htm

“In the race I was really nervous because after 12 years as a leader this was the first time to give a real lead-out to a teammate,” said Zabel via Bici Race

Zabel despite having the junior version of the Milram leadout train was not able to get anything better than second place in several races. The Zabel contingent was only able to get a victory with Elia Rigotto who slipped off the front at the Tour Méditerranéen back in February.

Zabel’s new role may be a tough pill for the experienced German to swallow, but he is the ultimate professional. Having a top-of-the-line leadout man such as Zabel will prove invaluable for Petacchi in races such as Milan San Remo where the Treno Blu of Quick Step will be working hard for the World Champ Boonen to take a win.

The switch from Marco Velo to Erik Zabel as the final leadout man is probably for preparation for Milan San Remo. There would be less pressure for a rider as large as Velo to make it in the final group in San Remo.

Petacchi is hinting at taking t easy at Tirreno Adriatico this week. Perhaps he is trying to save his energy for Milan San Remo, but too many on-form cyclist have been downplaying their ambitions and form. So I look for Petacchi to win every sprint stage possible.

Bici Race