Alejandro Valverde and Paolo Bettini in a sprint finish. In the Tour de France Cunego was the winner of the young rider classification; he finished 2nd on stage 15 to Alpe d'Huez, after losing to Fränk Schleck, who broke away in the final . He also finished 3rd on stage 17, on the road to Morzine. In 2007 Cunego again won the Giro del Trentino and his second Giro di Lombardia. In 2008 he won the Klasika Primavera and the Amstel Gold Race, with two powerful sprints against Valverde and Schleck, with victory in the latter propelling him to the top of the UCI Pro Tour rankings, as he also went on to finish second in the UCI Road World Championships. He was widely tipped to be victorious in the Tour de France, but he struggled and eventually dropped out before the finish. By the end of the year Cunego conquered for the third time at the Giro di Lombardia and then he ended the season with victory in the Japan Cup, confirming himself as one of the best Classics specialists in the world. In 2009 he won the Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali with victories in two stages; later he won two mountain stages at Vuelta a España, which made him one of the favourites for the road race at the UCI Road World Championships. He ultimately finished that race in eighth position. In July 2013, he was one of 27 former riders and officials linked to the team indicted for doping in an Italian court, with a hearing set for 10 December 2013. In early 2014 however, details emerged that indicated that Cunego might have been one of few Lampre riders to refuse treatment by Spanish doctor José Ibarguren Taus, who was linked to doping practices. Nippo–Vini Fantini (2015–18) In October 2014, it was announced that Cunego was to leave to ride with in 2015. Post-career In June 2020, Cunego was hospitalised due to ventriculitis, an infection of the cerebral ventricle. Major results 1998 1st Overall Giro della Lunigiana 1999 1st Road race, UCI Junior Road World Championships 2nd Road race, National Junior Road Championships 2000 3rd Giro del Belvedere 8th Gran Premio Palio del Recioto 2001 2nd Gran Premio Palio del Recioto 2002 1st Giro d'Oro 1st Giro del Medio Brenta 2003 1st Overall Tour of Qinghai Lake 1st Stage 7 4th Overall Brixia Tour 4th