Spain's Joaquim Rodriguez of the Caisse d'Epargne team won the 195 km third stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico race from Gubbio to Montelupone.

The Spanish national road race champion attacked on the steep climb to the finish and crossed the line 12 seconds ahead of Italy's Danilo Di Luca and Sweden's Niklas Axelsson.

Thanks to his third place, Axelsson leads the week-long stage race. Italy's Enrico Gasparotto is second at 10 seconds behind, with Rodriguez third at 18 seconds.

Many of the riders struggled on the 20 percent gradient up to Montelupone, with some forced to walk their bikes to the summit.

"The climb to the finish was incredibly steep but I attacked at the right time and got a gap," Rodriguez said.

"It's a lot like the Mur de Huy climb up to the finish of the Fleche-Wallonne race in Belgium but it's even steeper and longer.

"Spanish riders don't usually like the one-day classics but I do because my father was a professional rider and so I grew up watching riders like the best Italian classics rider Michele Bartoli and Paolo Bettini on television."

Axelsson will wear the race leader's blue jersey during Saturday's 166 km fourth stage from Porto Recanati to Civitanova Marche but is not optimistic about his chance for overall victory.

"I rode well on the climb but I know I'd have to do a great time trial on Sunday to have any chance of winning," he said.

"There are a lot of great time trialists in this race, including world champion Fabian Cancellara. He's only 54 seconds behind me in the standings and so is the real favourite."

Axelsson retired in 2001 after failing a test for the blood-boosting drug erythropoietin (EPO) but made a comeback in 2004. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2007 but has made a complete recovery.

"I've made mistakes in the past and it was hard last year when I was undergoing chemotherapy but I'm glad I came back both times because cycling is my life," he said.

STAGE TWO

Italy's Raffaele Illiano prevailed in a sprint finish to take the second stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico race from Civitavecchia to Gubbio.

The Diquigiovanni rider beat compatriot Enrico Gasparotto and team mate Niklas Axelsson of Norway after being part of a six-rider attack that formed 20km from the finish of the 203km stage.

Gasparotto is the new race leader with Axelsson second at two seconds back and Germany's Linus Gerdemann six seconds down.

Illiano was in tears after taking the most important victory of his seven-year professional career.

"I'm incredibly happy. I've been waiting for this for a long time. I've only ever won minor races but now I think I've earned my place in the professional peloton," he said.

"I crashed during the first stage and I've got five stitches in my right knee but I felt good and so went with the late attack."

Team Barloworld rider Gasparotto was disappointed not to win the sprint but added the race leader's blue jersey to the pink jersey he won in the prologue of the Giro d'Italia last year and the red, white and green Italian national champion's jersey he won in 2005.

"I was suffering with cramp in the final kilometres of the stage and that definitely affected my chances in the sprint. However I'm happy to have the leader's jersey and will try and keep it for as long as possible," Gasparotto said.

Friday's 195km third stage is from Gubbio to Montelupone.

STAGE ONE

Spain's Oscar Freire of the Rabobank team won the opening stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico.

The three-times world road race champion beat Italy's Alessandro Petacchi and Spain's Jose Joaquin Rojas Gil in a sprint finish on the first day of the week-long race.

Australia's Robbie McEwen won the same stage in last year's race with a late attack in the chicane 300 metres from the finish.

McEwen was first through the two corners again this year but did not manage to open up a gap and Freire accelerated past him to win.

"I felt good during the stage. I knew it was going to be difficult, especially at the end, but I had a good position going into the last corner," said the 32-year-old Freire, who won the race in 2005.

"Last year McEwen surprised us and got a gap but this time we were ready for him and the sprint went perfectly for me."

"I went a bit early because McEwen was still out front but I knew I had to take a risk if I wanted to win. Petacchi was close but I just had enough speed to get to the line first."

The 161-km stage was characterised by a long breakaway by Russia's Mikhail Ignatiev and Ukraine's Yuriy Krivtsov.

They opened up a seven-minute lead but were caught four kms from the finish after a determined chase by the Milram, Diquigiovanni and High Road teams.

Freire, who has now won eight stages of the Tirreno-Adriatico during his 11-year career, will wear the race leader's blue jersey during Thursday's 203-km second stage from Civitavecchia to Gubbio.

Reuters