Matteo Pelucchi: Tirreno-Adriatico's surprise sprint winner

Mark Cavendish out of the action as Marcel Kittel crashes in final two kilometres of stage two

Matteo Pelucchi wins stage two of 2014 Tirreno-Adriatico

When the IAM Cycling crossed the finish line he forced many at Tirreno-Adriatico to look down at their start list. Number 87: Matteo Pelucchi, an Italian from Lecco. Most fan had expected one of the big names, like Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) or Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) to win today in Tuscany.

"I told myself at the start that a top five would be a good result," Pelucchi said. "I didn't expect I'd win."

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Gregor Brown

Gregor Brown is an experienced cycling journalist, based in Florence, Italy. He has covered races all over the world for over a decade - following the Giro, Tour de France, and every major race since 2006. His love of cycling began with freestyle and BMX, before the 1998 Tour de France led him to a deep appreciation of the road racing season.