The sinuous finale to stage 2 of Tirreno-Adriatico promised to provide a thrilling denouement, and so it proved on the road to Pomarance, as Zdenek Stybar (Etixx-QuickStep) soloed clear to take the win and move into the blue jersey of overall leader.
With an altitude gain of some 2,000 metres in the final 50 kilometres of racing, the final act of this stage was designed with puncheurs and Classics riders in mind, and world champion Peter Sagan (Tinkoff), Edvald Boasson Hagen (Dimension Data), Greg van Avermaet (BMC) and Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) were all to the fore in the breathless final kilometres.
It was Stybar, however, who won out. The Czech stayed close to the front on the 18% slopes of the final climb of Il Cerreto, and then ripped clear as the road flattened over the summit to cruise to a fine stage win.
