Simon Yates (Mitchelton – Scott) claimed his first Giro d’Italia stage victory in the most prestigious way, adorned with the Maglia Rosa atop a mountain finish dedicated to his childhood idol Marco Pantani. Thibaut Pinot (Groupama – FDJ) was a worthy runner-up whereas pre-race favourites Chris Froome (Team Sky) and Fabio Aru (UAE Team Emirates) lost contact on the Gran Sasso d’Italia.
STATISTICS
- First stage win at the Giro d’Italia for Simon Yates. It’s the 24th stage win for British riders in the history of the race. The last one was by Mark Cavendish in 2013 in Brescia (stage 21). Only one of the previous 23 Bristish victories were conquered at the top of a mountain: stage 21 from Como to Pila in 1987 by Robert Millar in front of eventual overall winner Stephen Roche.
- The stage winners in the Maglia Rosa before Simon Yates were Tom Dumoulin in stage 14 to Oropa last year;Â Michael Matthews in stage 3 to Sestri Levante in 2015;Â Nairo Quintana in stage 19 to Cima Grappa (ITT) in 2014; and Michael Matthews in stage 6 to Montecassino, also in 2014.
- This is the 10th Maglia Rosa for British riders: the fourth for Simon Yates who equals Mark Cavendish’s record, who wore the Maglia Rosa during two stages in 2009, stage 2 in 2011 and stage 1 in 2013. The other two were Bradley Wiggins in stage 1 in 2010 and David Millar in stage 3 in 2011.
- Seventh stage podium for Thibaut Pinot at the Giro d’Italia (including one win in stage 20 last year) and fourth stage podium for Esteban Chaves (including two wins, in stage 14 to Corvara in 2016 and stage 6 to the Etna this year).
FINAL RESULT
1 – Simon Yates (Mitchelton – Scott) – 225km in 5h54’13”, average speed 38.112km/h
2 – Thibaut Pinot (Groupama – FDJ) s.t.
3 – Esteban Chaves (Mitchelton – Scott) s.t.
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1 – Simon Yates (Mitchelton – Scott)
2 – Esteban Chaves (Mitchelton – Scott) at 32?
3 – Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb) at 38?
JERSEYS
- Maglia Rosa(pink), general classification leader, sponsored by Enel – Simon Yates (Mitchelton – Scott)
- Maglia Ciclamino(cyclamen), sprinter classification leader, sponsored by Segafredo – Elia Viviani (Quick-Step Floors)
- Maglia Azzurra (blue), King of the Mountains classification leader, sponsored by Banca Mediolanum – Simon Yates (Mitchelton – Scott)
- Maglia Bianca (white), young rider general classification leader, sponsored by Eurospin – Richard Carapaz (Movistar Team)
PRESS CONFERENCE
The stage winner and Maglia Rosa, Simon Yates, said: “I was not surprised by my performance today. I already felt on the Etna that I I had very good legs, but today was very a difficult stage, a very long one, so I was not 100% confident in doing well in the finale. I’ve seen [Domenico] Pozzovivo, who was incredibly strong; Thibaut Pinot was there again, looking good; and Tom [Dumoulin] is still there. We haven’t got so much time on him; 38 seconds of an advantage on him isn’t enough before the time trial. On the other hand, some guys lost time – Chris Froome, maybe it was from the crashes, maybe he’s got no form, I don’t know. I was surprised to see Fabio Aru being dropped, but it’s a long race. Maybe they can bounce back.”
