An attacking performance from the INEOS Grenadiers saw Egan Bernal and Thymen Arensman elevate themselves to eighth and ninth overall at the Giro d'Italia.
The team hit the front to up the pace on numerous occasions across the 15th stage of the race, making life difficult for their GC rivals on the road to Asiago.
After working their way into the large early break, Ben Turner and then Josh Tarling dropped back to help set the tempo on the Monte Grappa climb. A hard pace created a launchpad for Bernal to jump clear, coaxing out a small lead group over the top.
Arensman was able to bridge to a move which also included the maglia rosa of Isaac Del Toro (UAE Team Emirates - XRG) and Richard Carapaz (EF Education - EasyPost).
The race came back together on the descent, but once again on the final climb of Dori, the team hit the front. Jonathan Castroviejo and Lucas Hamilton set a firm tempo, with Primoz Roglic (Red Bull - Bora - Hansgrohe) amongst the riders unable to regain contact.
Reaction
Egan Bernal - “I wasn’t super great in the morning and, at the race start, I knew it was not going to be my day. It was good that this first part was flat because it allowed my feelings to change. In the first part of the Monte Grappa climb we took a bit more of a conservative approach, but then on the second one we decided to move. As we have said a couple of times already, we have nothing to lose - but a lot to gain. It was a fun, super hard day out there.
“My attack? I just tried to go full gas up the Monte Grappa. Thymen [Arensman] was super good, and Richard [Carapaz] is a guy with whom is great to go up the road. We cooperated, but the other group was going super hard too. In the descent, I felt I was going super fast, and still they caught up with us.
“Roglic? I don’t know what happened. The last climb wasn’t super steep, but it was the kind of road on which you can lose a lot of time once you get dropped. We did well to try. We are Team INEOS Grenadiers, and we always have to try something.”