 After his win of the 2000 Giro d'Italia he was recruited by the Italian super-team in 2001, aiming to repeat his 2000 Giro success.The start of the season showed promise, with Garzelli being a key player in teammate Paolo Bettini's win in Liège–Bastogne–Liège, with Garzelli himself finishing second.The finale of the race saw Bettini and Garzelli make tactical moves to benefit from each other's aggressions and saw them finish the race with a comfortable margin to decide the win amongst themselves.