Team Ineos Grenadiers wanted the first stage at all costs, which is why the British squad positioned itself at the front of the peloton from the early stages of the first day of racing at the Settimana Internazionale Coppi & Bartali. At Barolo, Frenchman Axel Laurance, taking advantage of the final meters on a slight climb, managed to capitalize on the excellent work of his teammates and won the sprint ahead of Mauro Schmid (Team Jayco AlUla) and Diego Ulissi (XDS Astana Team). An excellent performance by the Italian delegation, with as many as 6 Italians finishing in the top 10. 

THE RACE. Piedmont hosted the first day of racing at the Settimana Internazionale Coppi and Bartali, the first stage started from Barbaresco and finished in Barolo after 161 km. A lively stage well-suited for sprinters, also featuring 4 categorized climbs on the route, with the last one being second category, finishing 10 km from the finish line. 

The race was characterized by an attack from 8 riders: Manuele Tarozzi (Bardiani CSF 7 Saber), Kevin Pezzo Rosola (General Store - Essegibi F.lli Curia), Patryk Goszczurny (Team Visma Lease a Bike), Will Harding (Mg- K Vis Costruzioni e Ambiente), Ben Granger (Solution Tech NIPPO Rali), Emanuele Ansaloni and Mattia Ballerini (Team Technipes #inemiliaromagna caffè borbone) and Gabriele Raccagni (Team Polti Vist Malta) who, however, was caught approximately 75 km from the finish. The breakaway riders managed to build a maximum advantage of 2'55" over the peloton, which was constantly controlled by Team Ineos. 

The real acceleration of the peloton came approximately 30 km from the finish and in no time managed to close down the gap on the leaders. The peloton regrouped 16 km from the finish right at the start of the La Morra climb, the last one scheduled for this opening day of the Settimana Internazionale Coppi & Bartali. 

In the final stages of the race, it was a real battle for positions, with Red Bull Bora leading the peloton throughout the climb and the subsequent descent. In the closing kilometers, Team Ineos took over and positioned Axel Laurance in the best possible position. The Frenchman then exploited the false flat section to outpace his rivals at the Barolo finish line. A good day for the Italians, with Diego Ulissi finishing third, Nicolò Garibbo, Federico Iacomoni, Tommaso Bambagoni, Alessandro Fancellu and Filippo Turconi managed to secure a place in the top ten. 

Tomorrow Axel Laurance will start from Lodi wearing the leader's jersey; the 158 km leading to Massalengo present no particular difficulties and we should therefore witness a sprint finish. 

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FINISHING ORDER

1  Laurance Axel INEOS Grenadiers 3:44:52

2  Schmid Mauro  Team Jayco AlUla ,,

3  Ulissi Diego  XDS Astana Team ,,

4  Boichis Adrie  Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe ,,

5  Garibbo Nicolò  Team UKYO ,,

6  Iacomoni Federico  Team UKYO ,,

7  Vader Milan  Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team ,,

8  Bambagioni Tommaso  Team Technipes #inEmiliaRomagna Caffè Borbone

9  Fancellu Alessandro  MBH Bank CSB Telecom Fort ,,

10 Turconi Filippo Bardiani CSF 7 Saber ,