At the start of stage two in Italy yesterday, Paolo Bettini's maglia rosa was honoured in a special way by his team Quick.Step who painted its team car in pink. "I had already prepared for it," admitted team manager Patrick Lefévère. "I knew we had good chances to get the pink jersey on this parcours."
The other Belgian ProTeam, Davitamon-Lotto, also succeeded the double stage win and general lead as Robbie McEwen was the fastest man in the sprint finish in the Mediterranean coastal town of Santa Maria del Cedro. But team director Herman Frison denied the rumour that he, too, was going to follow the race in a pink car. "I must admit, that pink car was stunning! But we're not that flashy. Mind you, Robbie will wear a pink helmet," Frison said before the race.
