Not your conventional hilly classic here as we enter the season of falling leaves in Northern Italy. The parcours are pretty much pan flat for 120 or so kilometres before we get to rolling hills as we approach Torino.
The race builds up to the headline climb which dominates this race - Superga which is an undulating 6.5km climb which is not consitently steep but has a number of short 15% sections and this suits the punchy fast acceleration climbers.
Step forward Cesare Di Maggio who will be confident in his own country with the full backing of his Team Venchi Procycling mob, in the hunt of a top 10 team final position.
Di Maggio himself looking close to the individual standings leader, that said one of his rivals for that title Jonathan Bellis is here with his Rapha Condor-Qhubeka team who have had such a good season.
Speaking of good season both Team Bianchi and Jayco Red Bull are here. You wonder what they have in their box of tricks for today, Red Bull in particular with very strong seven man squad. Elsewhere Italian fans will be urging on the likes of Pirelli and Vespa who both chasing outside promotion spots though have left their biggest name leaders off the startlist.
Most pundits predict Di Maggio's biggest rival here will be Aleksandar Flügel who is always a danger in the hilly races, as ever at the end of the race the German will be on his own but as Tv camara's pick up the race it is VolksWagen who are on the front on the pack.
The news from the opening half of the race was that it was very attacking, a lot of teams realising that with Di Maggio and Flugal in the field they couldn't just wait for Superga at the end. After numerous attacks from almost every team other than VolksWagen and Venchi a breakaway has got clear and looking at the composition of it you imagine it is with some reluctance that these two teams have allowed the break to go clear.
In no man's land between this ten man breakaway and the pack are three riders all from teams looking to get a second rider in this breakaway move. Cristiano Salerno, Luis Afonso and Carlos Sastre are making this mid stage bid to get across.
VolksWagen are not getting too much help in regulating this gap and as it surges up to four minutes the break and two minutes to the three chasers, Rui Costa makes it three CSC Orbea riders clear.
Costa produced one of the season highlights this year when he took the Strade Bianchi classic with a similar move earlier on in the season. The race had arguably a stronger field than this one, the problem in the pack today is the strangely lethargic Venchi, Vespa and Bianchi squads.
They are leaving almost all of the regulating work to VolksWagen and it's between 75km to 60km to go do Venchi send a single rider to help the VolksWagen team.
With 60km left we have the break with a minute on the 3 chasers, two and a half minutes on Rui Costa but 5.30 on the pack. It is clear that the pack do need to pick it up a bit, step forward then Peter Sagan and Valerio Agnoli.
The question is, have they left it too late whilst it is 60 kilometres to the end it is only 40 or so kilometres before the tough Superga climb with it's narrow roads and changing gradients it could prove to be tough to draw back.
To help the break they are joined by two of the three chasers with Sastre dropping back to either help Costa or his old legs have given up the ghost. The leaders wind their way through these Capi style climbs on their way up to Superga still with a minute on Costa and Sastre and four minutes in the pack.
These little ramps of 400 to 600 metres begin to hurt some of the more tired members of the break. As riders like Floris Goesinnen, Artjom Timofeev (Tinkoff), Luis Afonso and Brad Armstrong drop back they delay Rui Costa's chase.
You can see Costa settling in with teammate Armstrong, no sign of Sastre who is now dropping back to the pack. The eight leaders must now be aware that the fate of this classic could well be in their hands as with 25km to go the four minute lead of the Di Maggio and Flugal trapped pack has been maintained. They also will not want Rui Costa to get across as the Portuguese has a brilliant kick.
The Superga climb begins then and now Salarno loses his teammate Pietropelli, Cerne's last man Afonso also is dropped though the remaining six continue to work together. You wonder how long they will continue to work together up at the front given that when this climb crests it really is pretty much a straight descent to the line.
Surprisingly Costa has yet to move on from the riders dropped before this climb, he clearly doesn't quite have the legs of his Strade Bianchi win but still could bridge with a well timed move.
Back at the pack still back four minutes back are still being led by either Venchi or VolksWagen. Really if Di Maggio or Flugal have any chance they need to make their move right from the bottom. That said though it is a big ask to romp up this one on what has been a pretty fast pace all day.
Up front Iannetti and Bernucci intelligently remain at the front, they are probably concerned about Cherel and Dowsett who are dangerous punchaers the Italian riders here Bernucci, Iannetti and Salerno are probably hoping for a sprint. They approach the top of this climb keeping a good pace hoping that Costa cannot bridge.
Costa has left his breakaway companions and is making some ground, though the gap is coming back a little slowing he still has 1.30 to bridge you would have to say most of that needs to be made up before the top of the climb.
Amazingly midway up the climb and still nothing from Di Maggio or Flugal, perhaps the long flat roads tired them? Jonathan Bellis and John Gadret are moving forward now perhaps thinking of battling for the minor places.
Indeed both attack the pack, it's a bit dangerous for their teammates forward if they bring others across though the gap looks unbridgable.
This does draw Flugal and Di Maggio out, also going across a third Unicredit rider Pieter Weening.
Jelle Vanendert also gets ahead of the pack but behind the fallen Venchi and VolksWagen pacers gaps appear in the pack with the impotent (for today) Vespa and Bianchi riders caught well back with their pants down.
Over the top go our six leaders, no attacks made from Dowsett or Cherel as Unicredit take control. This is correct Bernucci has a good kick, with Salerno the other man in the break with decent sprint skills.
Behind Costa is solo at two minutes, he suffered on that climb and just wasn't able to make the junction with the leaders. He really needed to do it before they started dropping riders.
The prerace favourites Flugal, Di Maggio and Bellis are together with Gadret, Weening and Vanendert at 3.30. Remarkably the only other punchaer to have got up to them is a third Red Bull rider Kim Kirchen.
Gadret a strong mountain biker uses his descending skills to put pressure on the others in the favourites group has he mops up the former breakaways dropped.
At the front the lead six begin to slow slightly watching each other for prime position for the sprint, perhaps unaware that Costa is too far behind at 1.30 Salerno panics at goes to the front to pace.
Further back Di Maggio has found a short false flat section to overtake the burnt Gadret and steal a 20 second advantage over he, Flugal and Bellis. Vanendert is further back with Weening and Kirchen not helping by shadowing the Belgian.
Salerno then has been forced into the leadout position, the 27 year old is fast enough to burn them off his wheel if he has the legs though. Iannetti has got himself on point with a real chance of a big career result, that said he has the two Unicredits there who both know how to win from this position. Cherel and Dowsett are both hardly out of it either, neither looking in trouble on the climb at any stage.
The road only flattens out in the last kilometre and with Ianetti starting to creep alongside Salerno and Bernucci making his move from the back, Salerno needs another gear.
Salerno cannot find one, remember he had to chase across earlier on clearly he doesn't have the sprint at the end. Ianetti eases past and with 600m left he doesn't have long to hold the others off.
Bernucci is moving the fastest and Dowsett looks to be halted by a falling back Salerno, Cherel doesn't seem to be able to move much on Iannetti so it is between the Italians Iannetti and Bernucci.
It's between two Italians but probably not the two we expected, Bernucci is closing on Iannetti with every pedal stroke.
100 metres left, the Italian fans are going nuts.
The man in purple just about holds off the Unicredit rider, he and his teammate punch their handlebars in frustration.
Cherel takes third in a typical Jayco Red Bull style race, Dowsett manages to overhaul Grau for fourth the Brit a bit unlucky to be blocked by Salerno who finishes 6th.
Further back Costa finishes 7th holding off a charging angry Di Maggio. Costa mid stage attack didn't quite pay off, but he will not go to bed wondering tonight really unlike Di Maggio who it looks would have won had it been pulled together.
Flugal comes 9th, ahead of Gadret who both strangely are able to outsprint Bellis.
Kirchen takes 12th ahead of Weening who both sat behind Vanendert all the way down the climb.
A day for the breakaway today as we have seen a few times on the hilly classics this year. It was a strong break really and a surprise not to see Vespa and Bianchi not in it.
Carrara is Vespa's best finisher in 17th De le Fuente comes home in 25th - a rare off day for them.
