Like stage 1 winner Mads Pedersen, Filippo Ganna will be riding the Circuit de la Sarthe in northwest France to set the tone for Paris-Roubaix on the 17th.

Time trial world champion Filippo Ganna joined Pedersen's breakaway on the first stage in Mamers and was in sixth place overall after the opening stage.

"The first stage was a hard day," Ganna told Cycling News at the start of the second stage in Lelude.

"The group broke apart in the middle of the race. I wanted to put Luke Plapp in front because he is almost the leader here, and I needed to train because the last good race was Tirreno-Adriatico."

"In Milan - San Remo I was a little tired from the flu I had the day before. It went pretty well. Yesterday's stage ended pretty banged up, but it helped."

Paris-Roubaix is a race Gana has yet to finish as a professional; he won it under 23 in 2016, although he was off the time limit in 2018 and failed to finish in 2019.

It's a big goal for him this year. His race program has changed and the Giro d'Italia is not scheduled;

"I want to get a good feeling on the Circuit de la Sarthe before Paris-Roubaix," the Italian explained.

"Racing here will help me regain the strength and pedal strokes I lost after being away from racing for so many days. I want to finish the race in the right rhythm."

Ganna was adamant that racing takes precedence over training during stage races.

"I want to win the stage with Elia Viviani. But I also know that the last two days of racing here will most likely take place under bad weather conditions. In that case, a lot can happen and a group sprint is not a certainty. Therefore, we can try to position the plap in a situation where we can try to win the overall."

The remaining three stages appear tailor-made for Pedersen to retain the yellow-and-white leader's jersey, sponsored by a local lillet producer.

"As for myself, GC is not out of the question, but as people say, you have to look at it day by day," Ganna concluded.

"The time bonuses are very important and I am not fast enough to get them all in the sprint. I might as well break away from the top of GC to get away for a stage win like I did yesterday."