Today’s 189 kilometre long 6th and penultimate stage of Tirreno-Adriatico offered one final chance for the sprinters and breakaway riders to succeed as the stretch from Bucchianico to Port Sant´Elpidio was rather flat with a slightly undulating finale.

Four riders, Peter Kennaugh (Sky), Steve Morabito (BMC), Jack Bauer (Garmin-Sharp) and Cesare Benedetti (NetApp-Endura) greeted the challenge and formed the front group of the day.

But towards the final 35 kilometres of the stage, the course became a little bumpy and as several other sprinters were dropped on the slopes, the Cannondale riders did not hesitate to increase the pace of the pack to prevent them from coming back and at the same time drag the escapees back.
 
With ten kilometres remaining, the break was caught and Mark Cavendish, André Greipel, Mark Renshaw and Peter Sagan lined up their teammates for a hectic finish and the Manx missile was absolutely flying and took the stage in superb style. A pile-up close to the finish line didn’t make it more difficult for him, though.
 
Tinkoff-Saxo’s Alberto Contador crossed the finish line surrounded by teammates and is now ready for the final and crucial 9 kilometre long individual time trial tomorrow.
 
DS, Philippe Mauduit comments:
 
“It was a perfect scenario for us. We were hoping that the sprinter teams would take the reins of the pack and as Kittel was dropped, they were all eager to work in the front so we didn’t have to. Now, we’re only one stage away from the overall win and let’s face it, it looks pretty promising with a two minute lead to Quintana. But history shows that many unforeseen things can happen during a time trial and we’re not celebrating until Alberto crosses the finish line tomorrow. Roman is in a good position as well and if he can finish second overall, it would be a major achievement for us. However, he has been working hard the whole week for Alberto,” Mauduit concluded.

You can read our preview of the final stage here and follow our love coverage at 14.15 CET on CyclingQuotes.com/live.