After being identified as one of the big dark horses for Milan-Sanremo on the basis of his performance in Tirreno-Adriatico, Mauro Santambrogio has said that he feels upbeat about his chances heading into Sunday’s race.
The Italian rider knows he is in perhaps the best shape of his career and doesn't want to squander the chance. “I will have to do well, this is the Carpe Diem moment for me and I don't want to miss it.,” he said. “I know that the weather could seriously impact on the race, but I am ready for anything and in Tirreno the possibility of competing in the water [wet conditions – ed.] was certainly not missed.”
There, Santambrogio was second to Chris Froome on the queen stage of the race, finishing ahead of WorldTour team leaders such as Alberto Contador (Team Saxo Tinkoff), Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha), Cadel Evans (BMC Racing Team) and the final race winner, Vincenzo Nibali (Astana).
He was also fourth on two other stages and finished seventh overall. Because of that, he’s feeling confident.
His team-mate Oscar Gatto is also fired up for the first big Classic of the year. “I'm good and ready for Sanremo,” he said. “With Scinto we have worked well, we will see how the race will play out, especially considering the weather and the attackers who do not want a quiet race. I love the classic and last year, descending the Poggio amongst the first, I felt really all its worth.”
The duo will be backed by six other riders, although Francesco Chicchi is also capable of winning if the race comes down to a big group sprint and if he is there.
Also pinning on race numbers on Sunday will be Mauro Finetto, Jonathan Monsalve, Kevin Hulsmans, Matteo Rabottini and Alessandro Proni.
Vini Fantini – Selle Italia general manager Luca Scinto believes his riders could perform well, but is also aware that things will have to go exactly to plan. “Santambrogio and Gatto have a chance to make a great race, but we'll have to be very tight and rehearsed because between teams will try to split up the group, and also the weather promises to be very tough…there will be a lot of variables,” he said.