The WorldTour-rated "race of the two seas" features seven individual stages, starting with an opening team time trial in Tuscany on March 12th and finishing with an individual time trial in Marche on March 18th. The Cannondale is hoping this year's Tirreno-Adriatico will offer Sagan, Basso and Moser the chance of dominating almost every stage of the race which is known to announce the coming of Spring.

"This is a key moment in my season. Tirreno-Adriatico is a challenging race and a delicate phase in view of the Classics, Milano-San Remo being the first," Sagan told RoadCycling.com. Sagan won two stages in Tirreno-Adriatico 2013 and one in 2011 and is hoping to use Tirreno-Adriatico to build on his form while winning stages. "My first target will be stage wins, many of which are desirable. My second target is improvement of my condition. I want to finish the race in better form than I started it."

"Stage races are my favorite and suited to me, so I have the confidence needed to do well. The opportunity to challenge many strong General Classification riders constitutes additional motivation and I want to be in the front when the going gets tough," Basso explained. "I am a work in progress, but I am riding at a high level. Tirreno-Adriatico is not just a step on the road to the 2014 Giro d'Italia, it's a race where I want to generate important results."

"Taking part in a high-level competition such as the Tirreno-Adriatico is a goal in itself. The desire to perform well and, why not, take a win, is strong but does not cause any stress," Moser commented. "I think the best way for me to participate in the race is to take it one day at a time. I don't want to target a specific stage. I just want to be ready to maximize my chances. The general classification is not a goal for me right now. I'm thinking about the potential stage victories," Moser concluded.

Sagan, Basso and Moser will be joined and supported by teammates Oscar Gatto, Maciej Bodnar, Kristijan Koren, Paolo Longo Borghini and Alan Marangoni.

"We have strong ambitions for this important race and we selected a solid team to target our goals. The role and chances of Sagan are clear, as it was seen in last year's race. From Basso I expect a top-level performance. Moser could be the surprise and our joker. We have many opportunities, starting from the team time trial," Team Cannondale sports director Stefano Zanatta explained.

How will the Cannondale riders fare in this year's Tirreno-Adriatico? Check in at www.roadcycling.com to find out and be sure to follow Roadcycling.com on Twitter, Facebook and Google+.