In a chaotic finish due to a crash, Davide Ballerini (XDS Astana Team) won the sixth stage of the 2016 Giro d’Italia in a thrilling sprint finish, after covering 141 flat kilometers between the cities of Paestum and Naples.
The Italian rider crossed the finish line first with a time of 3:19:30. Belgian Jasper Stuyven (Soudal Quick-Step) finished second and Frenchman Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step) third. The general classification remained unchanged at the top, with Portugal’s Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain – Victorious) retaining the overall lead.
The 141-kilometer stage between Paestum and Naples seemed destined from the start to end in a sprint finish. The route offered few significant difficulties beyond the climb to Cava de’ Tirreni, a 6.6-kilometer ascent at 3%, and the peloton never allowed the breakaway to gain too much of an advantage.
The day’s attack was initially led by Edward Planckaert and Luca Vergallito, both of Alpecin-Premier Tech, before they were joined by Mattia Bais, Martin Marcellusi, and Manuele Tarozzi. Later, the group was reduced to four riders, but Lidl-Trek, Soudal-Quick Step, and Unibet Rose Rockets kept the situation under control, clearly focused on Jonathan Milan, Paul Magnier, and Dylan Groenewegen.
All the tension of the day came to a head in the final kilometers in Naples. The organizers had prepared a finish very different from a conventional sprint, with curves, narrow sections, and, above all, a final stretch over gently rising cobblestones towards the Piazza del Plebiscito.
With 650 meters to go, the riders turned left onto the cobbled section, followed by two 90-degree bends before the final straight. A very technical and tense finish that exploded just as the lead-out trains began to launch.
Within the final kilometer, several riders crashed, and the sprint became completely disorganized. The crash broke up several lead-out trains and forced many riders to improvise on the cobblestones.
In the midst of this chaos, Davide Ballerini found the perfect gap to launch his sprint and take the victory in Naples. Behind him came Jasper Stuyven and the rest of the surviving sprinters from a finish where positioning and the ability to maneuver in the chaos were almost more important than pure speed.
Although he couldn’t achieve a hat trick, Paul Magnier was once again at the front and continues to consolidate his lead in the points classification after having already won two stages in this Giro.
There were no significant changes in the general classification. Afonso Eulálio comfortably retained the pink jersey after the significant advantage he gained in the breakaway on stage five and will arrive in the leader’s jersey at the first major mountain stage to Blockhaus.
The Giro d’Italia continues this Friday with stage seven, a mountainous 244-kilometer route starting in the small town of Formia and finishing in Blockhaus, featuring two categorized climbs and a slightly uphill finish.
Giro d’Italia (2.UWT)
Results Stasge 6 | Paestum – Nápoles (141 km)
| 1 | Davide Ballerini | XDS Astana Team | 3:19:30 |
| 2 | Jasper Stuyven | Soudal Quick-Step | ,, |
| 3 | Paul Magnier | Soudal Quick-Step | ,, |
| 4 | Jensen Plowright | Alpecin – Premier Tech | ,, |
| 5 | Ben Turner | Netcompany INEOS | ,, |
| 6 | Alec Segaert | Bahrain – Victorious | ,, |
| 7 | Luca Mozzato | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | ,, |
| 8 | Filippo Magli | Bardiani CSF 7 Saber | ,, |
| 9 | Enrico Zanoncello | Bardiani CSF 7 Saber | ,, |
| 10 | Casper van Uden | Team Picnic PostNL | ,, |
Ranking General Individual
| 1 | Afonso Eulálio | Bahrain – Victorious | 24:47:13 |
| 2 | Igor Arrieta | UAE Team Emirates – XRG | 2:51 |
| 3 | Christian Scaroni | XDS Astana Team | 3:34 |
| 4 | Andrea Raccagni | Soudal Quick-Step | 3:39 |
| 5 | Johannes Kulset | Uno-X Mobility | 5:17 |
| 6 | Giulio Ciccone | Lidl – Trek | 6:12 |
| 7 | Jan Christen | UAE Team Emirates – XRG | 6:16 |
| 8 | Florian Stork | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 6:16 |
| 9 | Egan Bernal | Netcompany INEOS | 6:16 |
| 10 | Thymen Arensman | Netcompany INEOS | 6:18 |
Source: Revista Mundo Ciclístico y www.brujulabike.com