in the final stage, giving him first place in the points classification. The 2008 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, over Paolo 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 the Mortirolo 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 the Eneco Tour. There he was second to Tom 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 to André Greipel. Bennati then dropped out of the Eneco Tour and proceeded to the Vuelta 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 the UCI Road World Championships, and his bad luck in Paris–Tours, the sprinters’ classic, continued; he finished 8th in a race won by Philippe Gilbert. However, Bennati won his final race of the year, the Giro del Piemonte; it was his second victory in this race, which he also won in 2006. 2011–12: Leopard Trek At the Vuelta a España, Bennati took his first win of the 2012 season in a very close finish on stage 18, edging 's sprinter Ben Swift. He dedicated his