Alessandro Petacchi won a mass sprint yesterday to take the second stage of the Giro d'Italia, with Mark Cavendish finishing second to take the overall lead.

The Lampre rider finished the longest stage of the Giro in 5 hours, 45 minutes and 40 seconds after completing a 244-kilometre (151-mile) ride from Alba to Parma. Cavendish beat Manuel Belletti of Colnago for second place, with the Italian settling for third.

Cavendish took over the pink jersey from his HTC-Highroad teammate Marco Pinotto, who won the first stage.

The 21-stage Giro finishes in Milan on 29 May .