Two more riders quit the race Friday. Aitor Gonzalez threw in the towel because of a stomach illness while Kazakhstan's Alexandre Vinokurov pulled out because of fitness problems.
Germany's Jan Ullrich won the Coppa Sabatini race in Tuscany on Thursday, confirming his status as a top contender for the world championships in Verona next week.
The former Tour de France champion and five-time runner up edged Italy's Franco Pellizotti and Michael Boogerd of the Netherlands in a sprint finish after the trio broke away from the main pack with 12 kilometers to go.
Ullrich, who rides for the T-Mobile team, covered the 198km course in 4 hours, 47 minutes and 36 seconds at an average speed of 41.4km per hour.
In Verona next week, Ullrich will be a strong contender in both the road race and time trial, the last of which he has won twice.
Pellizotti will be a support rider for Italian leaders Paolo Bettini and Damiano Cunego at the worlds.
Boogerd will be one of the Dutch team's leaders.
Pellizotti and Boogerd received the same finishing time as Ullrich. The main pack finished 14 seconds behind, with Slovenia's Uros Murn winning the group sprint.
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