 Bennati at the 2015 Tour de France | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Daniele Bennati |
| Nickname | Benna |
| Born | (1980-09-24)24 September 1980 (age 45) Arezzo,Italy |
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft1⁄2 in) |
| Weight | 73 kg (161 lb; 11 st 7 lb) |
| Team information | |
| Discipline | Road |
| Role | Rider |
| Rider type | Sprinter |
| Professional teams | |
| 2002 | Acqua & Sapone–Cantina Tollo |
| 2003 | De Nardi–Colpack |
| 2004 | Phonak |
| 2005–2007 | Lampre–Caffita |
| 2008–2010 | Liquigas |
| 2011–2012 | Leopard Trek |
| 2013–2016 | Saxo–Tinkoff |
| 2017–2019 | Movistar Team[1] |
| Major wins | |
Grand Tours
| |
Daniele Bennati (born 24 September 1980) is an Italian formerroad racing cyclist,[2] who rode professionally between 2002 and 2019 for theAcqua & Sapone–Cantina Tollo,De Nardi–Colpack,Phonak,Lampre–Fondital,Liquigas–Doimo,RadioShack–Nissan,Tinkoff andMovistar Team squads.
Specialising in fastsprint finishes, Bennati turned professional in 2002, when he joined the teamAcqua & Sapone–Cantina Tollo and wore zebra stripes as part ofMario Cipollini's leadout train. Upon joining theLampre–Caffita team in 2005, he demonstrated the ability to win on his own, and continued to do so when he joinedLiquigas in 2008. Bennati has won 11 stages inGrand Tours: two in theTour de France, three in theGiro d'Italia, and six in theVuelta a España. He won the points jersey in the2007 Vuelta a España, and theGiro d'Italia.
He retired at the end of the 2019 season, citing back pain.[2]
Bennati was born inArezzo,Tuscany, into a family of cyclists. His father did well as an amateur, and his brother raced as a junior.[3] Bennati entered and won his first race at the age of 9. As an amateur he raced in the Grassi Mapei team, and won a stage of the Giro delle Regioni.
At the age of 21, Bennati turned professional and joined theAcqua & Sapone–Cantina Tollo team of the successful Italian sprinterMario Cipollini. Bennati soon showed an ability to sprint of his own: in March 2002, he finished second in a stage of theSettimana internazionale di Coppi e Bartali, behindAlessandro Petacchi. He took his first victory in June at theTour of Austria, and he took another one two months later at theRegio-Tour. He was an important part of Cipollini'sleadout train, alongsideGuido Trenti, Mario Scirea, Martin Derganc andGiovanni Lombardi, helping Cipollini to some of his fourteen victories that year. When Cipollini dropped out of the Vuelta a España, Bennati received his team's support and managed his first strong result in a Grand Tour sprint stage, 5th at the stage twelve finishing inBurgos.[4] A few days later, he dropped out of the race too.
In 2003, Bennati stayed with the same team, although it had changed sponsors and was now calledDe Nardi–Colpack. As his stature grew, Bennati was seen at Cipollini's side in his favorite Italian races. In the Grand Tours, Cipollini followed his usual practice of dropping out when the road went up, which gave Bennati a chance to race for himself – he was second to Alessandro Petacchi in one of the stages of theGiro d'Italia. His two wins for the year came in stages of theTour Méditerranéen (in February) and in theTour of Poland (in September).
At the end of 2003, Bennati signed a contract with thePhonak team. However, his year in the Swiss team was spoiled by a virus that forced him to drop out ofTirreno–Adriatico, and was followed by a recovery of several months. He did not get any victories during that season. In 2005, he signed a contract with the Italian teamSaeco, which then merged withLampre to form Lampre–Caffita, a larger team that designed to compete in theUCI ProTour.
At Lampre, Bennati grew from a promisingdomestique into a top sprinter. This transition was not instantaneous: early in 2005, he finished sprints behind both his old leader Cipollini, and teammateGiosuè Bonomi. Nevertheless, he accumulated a number of good finishes: 5th in a stage ofTirreno–Adriatico and 28th atMilan–San Remo. His first important result was inGent–Wevelgem, where he outsprintedThor Hushovd andFabian Cancellara for 3rd place, behind thebreakaway ofNico Mattan andJuan Antonio Flecha. He tested positive forBetamethasone after the race, but was only handed a warning by theItalian Cycling Federation.[5] A few weeks later, Bennati won theGiro di Toscana. He did not compete in theGiro d'Italia – where Lampre concentrated on the overall victory withGilberto Simoni andDamiano Cunego – nor did he ride theTour de France. In August, he won three stages and the points jersey in theTour of Germany, and had good placings in important races such as theGrand Prix de Plouay (4th), theCoppa Placci (5th), and theGiro di Romagna (2nd). September brought two more stage victories in theTour of Poland. Thanks to these results, he was chosen for the Italian national team that competed in theUCI Road World Championships inMadrid, but the team leader,Paolo Bettini, finished only 13th. At the season's close, Bennati was ranked 28th in theUCI Pro Tour standings, and had become a rider to watch.
During the off-season, Bennati's team changed its secondary sponsor, becomingLampre–Fondital, and signed another promising Italian sprinter,Danilo Napolitano, setting up a competition for the top sprinter's spot on the team. Bennati started the 2006 season with two second places in theGran Premio della Costa Etruschi (behind Alessandro Petacchi, who had taken over Cipollini's mantle as the dominant Italian sprinter), and then took his first win of the season in February's Volta a la Communitat Valenciana, four seconds ahead of the peloton, led home by Napolitano. In March, Bennati was due to be the team's leader for the important races. He probably was not at his best form when he started theTour of Flanders, and he had to drop out. He was then unable to start theGent–Wevelgem race. Ten days later, however, a fully recovered Bennati won the final stage of theGiro del Trentino, won overall by teammate Cunego. The next week, he competed in theTour de Romandie, whereRobbie McEwen showed that Bennati was not quite at the top level.
The Lampre team for theGiro d'Italia was again built around the overall competition, and Bennati was not included. Instead, he participated in theVolta a Catalunya, winning the final stage ahead ofErik Zabel. In early June, he outsprinted his two breakaway companions to win theMemorial Marco Pantani. Although he could only manage 2nd and 3rd places in theTour of Switzerland, he did wear the leader's jersey for one day and won the points jersey. July brought Bennati to his firstTour de France; he was among the top ten finishers in eight stages, including a 2nd place behind McEwen. He dropped out after a fall during the 16th stage; he was third in the points jersey competition at the time. Two months later, Bennati returned to theTour of Poland, where he won two stages and wore the leader's jersey for two days.
The following weekend, he won two more races: the GP Citta di Misano-Adriatico and theGran Premio Industria e Commercio di Prato, but was not chosen for the ItalianUCI Road World Championships team, as selectorFranco Ballerini opted to do without any sprinters. Although his result in the sprinters' classic,Paris–Tours, was disappointing (37th), Bennati ended his season with a victory at theGiro del Piemonte. This brought him to a total of 9 victories in 2006, but he dropped to 87th place in the Pro Tour standings – largely due to his absence from the spring classics due to illness.
Bennati spent much of his off-season training in theCanary Islands (withDaniele Righi,Giuliano Figueras, Caudio Corioni, andMauro Santambrogio) and began the 2007 racing season with two wins in February. In the Tour Méditerranéean he won one stage, with strong support from his teammateAlessandro Ballan, had two 2nd places – marginally beaten in one stage byMirco Lorenzetto – and won the points jersey. After a fourth place at theTrofeo Laigueglia, Bennati outsprintedAlessandro Petacchi for three wins in the Volta a la Communidat Valenciana. Unlike previous years, Bennati did not compete inTirreno–Adriatico, choosing to rideParis–Nice instead, where he had some high finishes but no victories. Once again, he was stricken by illness just prior toMilan–San Remo, where he finished 26th, and the Grand Prix E3 was a disappointment for the same reason.
Bennati's form improved in the beginning of April, where he won one stage of the Dreidaagse De Panne. In theTour of Flanders, he worked hard for Ballan, who won in a sprint ahead ofLeif Hoste. Although he was one of the favorites for the mid-week classicGent–Wevelgem, Bennati had to withdraw because of a fever and intestinal difficulties. He startedParis–Roubaix but did not make it to the finish. His troubles continued into May; Bennati had to drop out of theVolta a Catalunya, though he did manage a third place in one stage. In theTour of Switzerland he recovered his health and won the points jersey; although he had no stage victories, he had a second place in the prologue, behindFabian Cancellara, and second places in two other stages as well, behindErik Zabel andRobbie McEwen respectively. A few days later, Bennati took 6th place in theItalian National Road Race Championships.
In July, Bennati rode in theTour de France for the second time; he now had enough stature that his goals of winning a stage and competing for the points jersey were considered reasonable. As his team had no rider for the overall standings, he could count on help from his teammates Ballan, Napolitano, and Corioni. However, he fell in the last kilometer of the second stage and was not able to unleash his sprint until he had recovered somewhat from his injuries. In the fifth stage, he finished 3rd, behindFilippo Pozzato andÓscar Freire. There followed a 6th place, a 4th place, some unsuccessful breakaways, and then, after the last mountain stages, Bennati won twice, including the prestigious final stage on theChamps-Elysees. On the strength of his successes, he was named the leader of the Lampre team for theVattenfall Cyclassics race, but watched as his teammate Ballan took off from the peloton and held on to win.
In September, Bennati raced in his second Grand Tour of the season, the2007 Vuelta a España. He won the first stage ahead of Freire and Petacchi, and wore the leader's jersey for a day, losing it after a fall two kilometers from the finish of the second stage. After two second places, he came into his own during the final week, just as he had in the Tour de France: Bennati won the 17th stage and then the final stage in Madrid, taking the leadership in the contest for the points jersey on the final day of the race. This victory, his tenth of 2007, marked the end of Bennati's season. Although he had been scheduled to compete in theMonte Paschi Eroica andParis–Tours, he was found to have a broken wrist that ruled out any more racing.
During the final week of the Vuelta a España, Bennati had signed a two-year contract with a new team:Liquigas. Claudio Corioni and Enrico Franzoi, valuable teammates who formed an important part of his leadout train, also signed for Liquigas.
The move to Liquigas brought up some potential frictions: they now had two stars, Bennati andFilippo Pozzato, whose primary targets for the year would be similar. Any conflict in their spring racing goals disappeared, however, with Bennati's knee injury – a slight patellar chondropathy in the left knee, associated with inflammation of the lateral ligament – keeping him out of action until the end of April. He did not finish his first race back (the Giro d'Oro, but in his next race, the Giro del Trentino, he took 17th in the opening time trial but did not figure in any of the stage finishes. TheTour de Romandie opened with a very short prologue, where Bennati took second behindMark Cavendish. He also took second behindRobbie McEwen in the first sprint finish, showing that he was coming back into form. This was confirmed with a victory in the final stage, giving him first place in the points classification.
The2008 Giro d'Italia was a success for Bennati, and was marked by a series of battles with Cavendish. Bennati won the third stage, into Milazzo; the following day, Cavendish won the stage to Lungomare, his first Grand Tour win. The next sprinters' stage was the ninth; Bennati won, by a whisker, overPaolo Bettini, who was racing his final Giro d'Italia. Bennati also won the 12th stage, with a narrow margin over Cavendish; the order was reversed the following day. His three stage victories in a Giro with few stages suitable for sprinters also gave Bennati the points jersey. However, Bennati paid a price for the points jersey: the long pull in cold weather over theMortirolo Pass caused an inflammation of Bennati's left Achilles tendon, the same leg as the knee injury.
He did not return to competition until August, at theEneco Tour. There he was second toTom Boonen in the second stage before winning the third stage and taking the leader's jersey for a day. He was dropped in the fourth stage, finishing in 88th place 22 seconds behind Boonen and losing the lead in the GC toAndré Greipel. Bennati then dropped out of the Eneco Tour and proceeded to theVuelta a España in good form – where Pozzato was also a team leader. The Liquigas team won the first stage, a team time trial, with Pozzato crossing the line first and donning the leader's jersey. Bennati served as a domestique for Pozzato during the second stage, but when Pozzato did not retain the leader's jersey he was able to ride for himself. He was 2nd to Boonen the following day, and then won the fourth stage, ahead of Boonen but dropped out after the 9th stage. Bennati was not named to the Italian team for theUCI Road World Championships, and his bad luck in Paris–Tours, the sprinters’ classic, continued; he finished 8th in a race won byPhilippe Gilbert. However, Bennati won his final race of the year, theGiro del Piemonte; it was his second victory in this race, which he also won in 2006.
At theVuelta a España, Bennati took his first win of the 2012 season in a very close finish onstage 18, edgingTeam Sky's sprinterBen Swift. He dedicated his victory to the memory ofWouter Weylandt and of his grandfather.[6] Bennati left RadioShack–Nissan at the end of the 2012 season, and joinedBjarne Riis'Saxo–Tinkoff on a two-year contract from the 2013 season onwards.[7]
OnSaxo–Tinkoff, Bennati managed to be a part of the team for the2013 Tour de France, even though it was highly occupied by riders likeAlberto Contador,Nicolas Roche,Michael Rogers andRoman Kreuziger. His goal for the Tour de France was not to win a stage, but to help Contador to get the overall victory.
Points classification Points classification,Tour de Suisse
Points classification Points classification Points classification,Tour de Suisse Points classification
Points classification Points classification Points classification
OverallGiro di Toscana Points classificationSource:[8]
| Grand Tour | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Giro d'Italia | — | DNF | DNF | — | — | — | 70 | — | — | — | DNF | DNF | — | — | — | DNF | — |
 Tour de France | — | — | — | — | DNF | 74 | — | 132 | — | — | — | 107 | 96 | DNF | — | 104 | 104 |
 Vuelta a España | DNF | — | — | — | — | 63 | DNF | 84 | 83 | 111 | 144 | — | 108 | 131 | 107 | — | 133 |
| Monument | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milan–San Remo | — | 65 | — | 28 | — | 26 | — | 6 | 5 | 13 | 10 | 28 | 18 | DNF | DNF | 14 | 91 | 144 | |
| Tour of Flanders | — | DNF | — | 53 | — | 19 | — | DNF | DNF | — | 94 | DNF | DNF | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Paris–Roubaix | — | DNF | — | DNF | — | DNF | — | — | — | — | 86 | — | — | — | — | 41 | — | DNF | |
| Liège–Bastogne–Liège | Did not contest during career | ||||||||||||||||||
| Giro di Lombardia | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | DNF | — | — | — | — | |
| Classic | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | |
| Strade Bianche | Race did not exist | — | — | 11 | — | DNF | 11 | — | 51 | 61 | 54 | — | DNF | — | |||||
| Gent–Wevelgem | — | DNF | — | 3 | — | DNF | — | — | 26 | 2 | 6 | DNF | 18 | — | — | 24 | DNF | — | |
| Hamburg Cyclassics | 93 | 82 | — | DNF | 55 | 73 | — | 7 | 6 | — | — | 56 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| GP Ouest-France | — | — | — | 4 | DNF | — | — | 18 | — | — | — | 5 | — | — | — | 21 | — | — | |
| Paris–Tours | 101 | — | — | 2 | 37 | — | 8 | — | 42 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| — | Did not compete |
|---|---|
| DNF | Did not finish |
Media related toDaniele Bennati at Wikimedia Commons
