Julian Alaphilippe’s early breakthrough paid off as the Soudal Quick-Step rider bravely fended off his pursuers to win stage 12 of the Giro d’Italia.
There are enough climbs in the 193 kilometers from Martinsicuro to Fano on the Adriatic coast to offer those willing to risk an attack and prevent the sprinters from claiming another stage victory Chances are, Alaphilippe’s strategy paid off. The Frenchman joined a breakout group of 10 riders for the 130km race, but then set off alongside Polti Kometa’s Mirco Maestri, with the pair blocking the line behind them A swarm of pursuers.
Maestri ran out of steam and Alaphilippe was alone with less than 15 kilometers to go, and with Quinten Hermans (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Jhonatan Narváez (Ineos Grenadiers) closing in, the French rider had enough legs to sprint to the finish line, Narváez finished second ahead of Hermans.
“The plan is not to run 125 kilometers like this, but to run with a large group of people,” Alaphilippe said. “The partnership with Mirco Maestri was great. He also deserved the stage win. I always believed I could win, but until the last few kilometers I had to give it my all. The pursuers were right behind me. My dream is to win in the ring Winning a stage at the Giro d’Italia makes me really happy and it’s an important victory for me after a difficult period.
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Race leader Emirates Team’s Tadej Pogacar was delighted to return to the peloton and ended up more than five minutes adrift of the winner, with the 13th-placed Slovenian still ahead of Boolahan Bora-Hansgrohe’s Daniel Martínez was third at 2:40, with Team Ineos’ Geraint Thomas 16 seconds behind.
“Alaphilippe showed that he’s back. What he did was actually incredible. That’s what champions do,” Pogacar said. “Fortunately, we have a big gap in terms of GC. If I didn’t do GC, I would want to try and win this stage, but I prefer doing GC.
