Giro d’Italia Stage 8 Race Report: Luke Plapp (Jayco AlUla) won a tough stage eight of the Giro d’Italia on Saturday. The Australian rode away from a large leading group and crossed the finish line solo. Wilco Kelderman (Visma | Lease a Bike) was amongst the action all day, had to settle for second place. It was also a very good day for the XDS Astana team, as Diego Ulissi was third on the stage and took the overall lead. His teammate, Lorenzo Fortunato was 7th on the stage and is now second overall and King of the Mountains.
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Stage 8 finale
The eighth stage in the Giro is made for the ‘break of the day’. The stage through the Apennines has two Cat 3 and one Cat 4 climbs, but at the halfway point of the 197 kilometre stage, there is a Cat 1 climb.
The top of the first climb comes after 60 kilometres into the stage, the Croce di Casale (8.6km at 4.6%). Next is the Valico di Santa Maria Madalena (13.2km at 7.2%) and the Montelago (5.5km at 7%). There are no more categorised climbs before the finish in Castelraimondo, but there are two uncategorised climbs that could be used as a spring-board for victory. The last climb it is only 6 kilometres to the finish.
The new pink jersey – Primoz Roglič – seems happy, will he defend the jersey?
Today was a stage made for a successful break, so there were a lot of early attacks. Among those who tried was: Wout van Aert and Mads Pedersen. The points leader escaped after a few kilometres with Davide De Pretto (Jayco AlUla) and Matteo Cattaneo (Soudal Quick-Step). The three made a good gap, but behind them the race was on. Several groups tried to cross, which kept the pace high in the peloton, but the difference fluctuated around 30 seconds.
Giulianova – Nice place for stage start
After 50 kilometres, Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe looked to have put a block on in the peloton. But with a new attack, Van Aert got the race going again. Pedersen took full points in the intermediate sprint, but 145 kilometres before the finish there was another regrouping. On the Croce di Casale (8.6km at 4.6%) the battle to get into the break started again.
A bit of accordion music from Roglič at the start
It was not possible to get away on the climb, although riders kept trying. Just after the summit, a leading group of six got together. When this group was also caught, Kelderman tried again, but unfortunately, the peloton did not let it go. The Dutchman stayed at the front and went with a large group which managed to get away after 80 kilometres.
Hopefully no need for umbrellas today
Mads Pedersen on the hunt for points
KOM Lorenzo Fortunato
A tough day, but perfect for a break
Igor Arrieta (UAE Team Emirates XRG) and Dylan Van Baarle (Visma | Lease a Bike) wanted to be in the ‘Break of the Day’
Damien Howson (Q36.5) and the break had over 5 minutes on the peloton
Diego Ulissi and Wilco Kelderman were in the front when the escape split
Luke Plapp went solo
A big win for Luke Plapp
Stage winner, Luke Plapp (Jayco AlUla): “It’s crazy. I can’t believe it to be honest. I feel like it’s been a long time coming, just targeting the Aussie summer and not being able to make a result happen in Europe. So many times I’ve been close at the Giro last year… It’s so special to make it happen today. We marked it as a stage for a few weeks. This morning on the bus we were very excited. The fight for the breakaway was unbelievably difficult. I gave myself one more chance and a massive group went. It was worth it in the end. I went solo with 45km to go because I knew that I couldn’t beat any of them in a sprint. The first one to make a move always has an advantage. I just thought I’d give it a crack. From the Olympics last year to a wrist surgery in February and crashing in the first time trial of the Giro, this win makes it worth the efforts to come back after all the setbacks. A result like this is amazing.”
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Giro d’Italia Stage 8 Result:
1. Luke Plapp (Aus) Jayco AlUla in 4:44:20
2. Wilco Kelderman (Ned) Visma | Lease a Bike at 0:38
3. Diego Ulissi (Ita) XDS Astana
4. Igor Arrieta Lizarraga (Spa) UAE Emirates XRG at 1:22
5. Nicolas Prodhomme (Fra) Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale at 1:35
6. Andrea Vendrame (Ita) Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale at 1:48
7. Lorenzo Fortunato (Ita) XDS Astana
8. Georg Steinhauser (Ger) EF Education-EasyPost at 2:59
9. Romain Bardet (Fra) Team Picnic PostNL at 3:02
10. Alessio Martinelli (Ita) VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè at 4:37
Giro d’Italia Overall After Stage 8:
1. Diego Ulissi (Ita) XDS Astana in 29:21:23
2. Lorenzo Fortunato (Ita) XDS Astana at 0:12
3. Primož Roglič (Slo) Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe at 0:17
4. Juan Ayuso Pesquera (Spa) UAE Emirates XRG at 0:20
5. Isaac Del Toro Romero (Mex) UAE Emirates XRG at 0:26
6. Antonio Tiberi (Ita) Bahrain Victorious at 0:44
7. Max Poole (GB) Team Picnic PostNL at 47
8. Michael Storer (Aus) Tudor at 0:50
9. Brandon McNulty (USA) UAE Emirates XRG at 0:51
10. Mathias Vacek (CZ) Lidl-Trek at 0:54.
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