Jonas Vingegaard has secured his first Giro d’Italia victory. The Dane from Visma Lease a Bike triumphed on stage 7, the longest of this year’s race, after attacking on the Blockhaus climb just over 4 kilometers from the finish, revealing the first real gaps between the favorites.
The stage between Formia and Blockhaus covered 244 kilometers and 4,600 meters of elevation gain, with a very fast start and a grueling finish on the Maiella. It was the first serious test for the overall classification, and Vingegaard seized the opportunity to confirm what was already expected: when the road really climbed, the top favorite proved to be the strongest.
The stage began with a five-rider breakaway consisting of Jonathan Milan, Jardi Christiaan van der Lee, Tim Naberman, Diego Pablo Sevilla, and Nickolas Zukowsky. Milan was looking to score points in the intermediate sprint at Venafro, while Sevilla tried to defend his lead in the mountains classification.
The peloton reached the decisive section with a gap of several minutes, but the group never lost control. Bahrain Victorious worked for much of the day to protect Afonso Eulálio’s pink jersey, while Visma Lease a Bike positioned itself for the final climb.
Before the Blockhaus climb came Roccaraso, a Category 2 climb, and the Passo San Leonardo, which toughened the race before the final ascent. The approach was also marked by rain, wet roads, and strong gusts of wind in the upper reaches of the mountain.
The final climb to the Blockhaus, 13.6 kilometers long with an average gradient of 8.4% and maximum ramps of 14%, began with the last survivors of the breakaway still ahead, but the situation quickly changed in the group of favorites.
Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe and Visma Lease a Bike took control before Davide Piganzoli began to set a very hard pace for Vingegaard. The selection was immediate. Igor Arrieta, second in the general classification, dropped back in the first few kilometers of the climb, and soon after, other big names began to fall away.
Egan Bernal and Enric Mas were the first major favorites to be dropped with about 7.5 kilometers to go. Lennert Van Eetvelt also lost contact shortly after, while the crosswinds in the open areas of the Blockhaus added even more difficulty to the climb.
With Piganzoli first and Sepp Kuss later, Visma finished thinning out the main group. When Kuss had done his work, Vingegaard launched the decisive attack without even getting out of the saddle. The Dane accelerated from the front of the group, and only Giulio Pellizzari could initially follow him.
The Italian rider from Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe held on for a few minutes to the wheel of the overwhelming favorite, but ultimately paid the price for his effort. Vingegaard maintained the pressure on every corner, and Pellizzari eventually cracked, quickly opening up a gap that he couldn’t close.
Behind them, Felix Gall steadily improved and eventually overtook Pellizzari to move into second place. The Austrian managed to reduce the gap to Vingegaard to around 15 seconds in the final kilometer, but the Dane maintained control and secured the victory.
Afonso Eulálio couldn’t keep pace with the leaders in the second half of the climb. The Portuguese rider from Bahrain Victorious finished almost 3 minutes behind Vingegaard and retains the pink jersey, although his lead of more than 6 minutes over the Dane before the stage was reduced by approximately half.
The stage also provides a clear picture for the overall standings. Vingegaard won, Gall confirmed his strength, Hindley and Ben O’Connor managed to limit the damage well, and Pellizzari, despite cracking after trying to stay with the Dane, once again demonstrated that he will be one of the key figures in this race.
For Bernal, Mas, and Van Eetvelt, however, the Blockhaus climb was a tough blow. Especially for the Belgian, who lost almost 4 minutes and will have to rethink his objectives for stage wins. Bernal also lost nearly 3 minutes and emerges weakened from the first major mountain test.
The Giro d’Italia continues this Saturday with the eighth stage, another mountainous day covering 156 kilometers from Chieti to Fermo, which includes four categorized climbs.
Giro d’Italia (2.UWT)
Results Etapa 7 | Formia – Blockhaus (244 km)
| 1 | Jonas Vingegaard | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 6:09:15 |
| 2 | Felix Gall | Decathlon CMA CGM Team | 0:13 |
| 3 | Jai Hindley | Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe | 1:02 |
| 4 | Giulio Pellizzari | Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe | 1:05 |
| 5 | Ben O’Connor | Team Jayco AlUla | 1:05 |
| 6 | Mathys Rondel | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 1:29 |
| 7 | Giulio Ciccone | Lidl – Trek | 1:40 |
| 8 | Derek Gee | Lidl – Trek | 1:42 |
| 9 | Michael Storer | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 1:44 |
| 10 | Thymen Arensman | Netcompany INEOS | 1:44 |
Ranking General Individual
| 1 | Afonso Eulálio | Bahrain – Victorious | 30:59:23 |
| 2 | Jonas Vingegaard | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 3:17 |
| 3 | Felix Gall | Decathlon CMA CGM Team | 3:34 |
| 4 | Jai Hindley | Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe | 4:25 |
| 5 | Giulio Pellizzari | Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe | 4:28 |
| 6 | Ben O’Connor | Team Jayco AlUla | 4:32 |
| 7 | Mathys Rondel | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 4:56 |
| 8 | Giulio Ciccone | Lidl – Trek | 4:57 |
| 9 | Thymen Arensman | Netcompany INEOS | 5:07 |
| 10 | Michael Storer | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 5:11 |
Source: Revista Mundo Ciclísto y www.brujulabike.com