When Gianluca Brambilla forged clear from the day's break on the climb of Pramartino with only Moreno Moser (Cannondale) for company, and after they had bludgeoned out a score draw on the short, cobbled ascent of San Maurizio, it seemed certain that stage 18 of the Giro d'Italia would be decided in a two-up sprint.
Little did Moser realise as they dropped into Pinerolo, however, that a third man was on the cusp of re-entering the reckoning. When Brambilla refused to take any more turns on the front on the descent, Moser initially mistook his actions for gamesmanship, not realising that he was laying the groundwork for teammate Matteo Trentin to latch back on.
"I had the information over earpiece, but I wasn't only listening to it, I looked back a few times too and I could see that Matteo was coming up," Brambilla said after the finish. "In a two-up sprint I normally look to be in front, but I stayed second wheel this time and I never even opened my effort because I was waiting for Matteo to come back on."
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Like Moreno Argentin catching and then bolting past Stephen Roche and Claude Criquielion in the finale of the 1987 Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Trentin didn't stand on ceremony when he caught Moser and Brambilla with 150 metres remaining. He burst straight past and – jersey still flapping open – punched the air in triumph, while Brambilla crossed the line in third with his arms raised.
"I started to believe I could win at 350 metres to go when I saw they weren't sprinting," Trentin said. "Once I managed to get up to them, I just carried right on, I didn't ride a metre with them."
For the final 10 kilometres of the stage, the television cameras focused almost exclusively on the duel between Brambilla and Moser, which made for gripping viewing in and of itself. "We hammered each other on the last climb, but neither of us gave in," Brambilla said. "But I must have hurt his legs because Matteo was able to get back on."
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