In Italian aquila means eagle and on a day that paid tribute to the Abbruzzese town of L'Aquila, devastated by an earthquake last year, a star-studded break that soared high above the peloton swooped to destroy the status quo of this year's Giro d'Italia with an effort that lasted 242km and netted Katusha's Evgeni Petrov the stage win. Petrov, who finished seventh overall in the 2007 Giro d'Italia, has experienced lean pickings since his success in Italy three years ago and the relief was palpable. "I'm very, very happy. I have to thank all my team, they helped me a lot today. Anna, I won!" he exclaimed after the finish.
For his delight, however, the Russian denied a local boy the win he had so desperately sought in his backyard. From there it was anyone's game - he with the strongest legs would prevail and that rider was Katusha's man-of-the-moment. The Russian tried his luck and as the day would have it, he finished 50 metres ahead of Cataldo, with Sastre coming in for a race-rejuvenating third place and Wiggins fourth.
Result
1 Evgeni Petrov (Rus) Team Katusha 6:28:29
2 Dario Cataldo (Ita) Quick Step 0:00:05
3 Carlos Sastre Candil (Spa) Cervelo Test Team
4 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Professional Cycling Team 0:00:07
5 Alexander Efimkin (Rus) AG2R La Mondiale