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Wednesday, August 19, 2009 Petacchi searches for ProTour team by VeloNation Press at 10:40 PM EST   comments Categories: Pro Cycling   Evergreen sprinter Alessandro Petacchi (LPR Brakes), one of the few riders that has beaten British phenom Mark Cavendish this season, is looking to hook up with a ProTour team for 2010. The Italian told La Gazzetta dello Sport the reason for the move is two fold. He cites lack of motivation in the late season because, with being on a second-division team, he currently has no guarantees that he will start in the Vuelta a España and Paris-Tours, races that he has traditionally targeted. The other concern for the Italian is the sponsorship situation within his LPR Brakes team, which has been complicated further by Danio Di Luca's positive doping tests from the Giro d'Italia. Team manager Fabio Bordonali is now forced to find a replacement title sponsor with a tainted image. This year Petacchi claimed three victories in ProTour races; a stage win in the Tirreno - Adriatico, and two stage wins in the Giro d'Italia, also wearing the leader's Maglia Rosa for a day. Without the security of invites to the major races, Petacchi admits that his preparation and motivation has been negatively impacted. In order to make the switch, Petacchi would have to terminate his contract with LPR Brakes a year early, but Bordonali said he wouldn't hold the sprinter back. The 35-year-old has proven he still has the speed to win at the top level, and would be a great addition to Italian team Lampre-NGC, who will have a spot to fill with Alessandro Ballan's exit.       comments Follow @Pro_Cycling Tweet Subscribe via RSS or daily email Contact the editor about this article