 His teammate Philippe Gilbert, who had finished on the podium of Milan–San Remo twice before, aimed at a victory to get closer to his goal of winning all five "monument races" of cycling.More riders considered to potentially play their hand on one of the climbs before the finish were Vincenzo Nibali (), Olympic champion Greg Van Avermaet (), Gianni Moscon () and Nathan Haas ().The race started in heavy rain in Milan.