2017 Giro d'ItaliaMay 26, 2017 by Travis Miller
Nairo Quintana Reclaims The Pink Jersey
Nairo Quintana Reclaims The Pink Jersey
Nairo Quintana reclaimed the pink jersey he briefly held 10 days ago and grabbed a 38-second overall lead over Tom Dumoulin after the Dutchman was dropped on the final climb of Stage 19 at the 2017 Giro d'Italia on Friday.
The fireworks began early on Stage 19 of the 2017 Giro d'Italia on Friday and didn't settle until a new race leader was pulling on the pink jersey at the summit finish in Piancavallo. Nairo Quintana (Movistar) recovered the maglia rosa he briefly held 10 days ago and grabbed a 38-second overall lead over Tom Dumoulin after the Team Sunweb rider was dropped on the final climb.
Mikel Landa (Team Sky) took the stage victory on an inspired solo finish, while Quintana crossed 8:21 behind in 16th. After being dropped on an earlier descent, Dumoulin once again got into trouble on the climb to Piancavallo and went off the back of the main group to finish 9:30 behind Landa.
The peloton's first split of the day occurred with over 100km to go in the stage. Team Sunweb sports director Aike Visbeek reported over the live broadcast that Dumoulin went for a natural break, and at that point, Movistar and Bahrain attacked. After the race, Dumoulin said that he made a "rookie mistake" and was just too far back at a crucial point in the race. Coming off of the Stage 18 controversy, Dumoulin was quickly put in a difficult position on Friday morning.
The day's early break, consisting of 14 riders, had a maximum advantage of 6:30, but once the peloton split during Movistar and Bahrain Merida's reported attack, they were swallowed up with about 95km to go. Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain Merida) and Quintana both had significant support within the lead group. Thibaut Pinot made the split along with some FDJ teammates. Former pink jersey-wearer Bob Jungles (Quick-Step Floors) was present in this group, which put him in a good position to earn back some time in the young riders classification after Adam Yates (Orica-Scott) was caught out behind with Dumoulin.
Dumoulin responded to the situation incredibly well. He didn't panic after seeing his rivals disappear up the road. There were other GC contenders, including Steven Kruijswik (Lotto NL-Jumbo), Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo), and Yates, who were also caught out by the early move. Quintana and Nibali's group extended its lead on the pink jersey to over a minute at its maximum advantage. Gradually, the gap closed and the race came back together with 90km to go riding up the Sella Chianzutan climb.
If the race wasn't exciting enough already, now it really got complicated. Very few of the GC contenders had any remaining teammates. While Dumoulin being isolated is nothing new in the Giro, Quintana riding without a single teammate with over half of the stage remaining was a new situation for the Columbian rider. Nibali, Pinot, and Jungles each had a teammate, but after reaching the top of the climb, it was going to be interesting to see who was going to do all the work for the remaining 87km.
The pace slowed significantly to allow the domestiques to rejoin the race lead, and the whole race came back together. A stage win was no longer an issue with a new breakaway forming and given a large advantage. The teams regrouped for all the main contenders to rest for the final effort of the day on the Piancavallo climb.
Once the peloton reached the bottom of the final climb, Movistar and Bahrain Merida began to apply serious pressure. Dumoulin was immediately thrown out the back and struggled to hold his teammate's wheel. They fought their way back to the rear of this decisive move, but the pace never slowed. Dumoulin lost contact again and fell back by 20 seconds. Once they got past the steepest part of the climb, Sunweb teammate Simon Geshke was doing a huge turn to hold the gap for Dumoulin. After Geshke pulled off, Dumoulin was left on his own and began to settle into a rhythm. Meanwhile, Pinot was attacking the GC group and opening a lead on his rivals.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/giroditalia/status/868114729771950080" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
After the support riders had exhausted their energy, the race exploded. Nibali made the first move and broke apart the remaining riders until only the top contenders were left. Quintana briefly was sent out the back but worked into the group when the pace eased. Excellent team tactics then played a huge factor. Jose Rojas (Movistar) and Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain Merida) had been sent up the road with the break and now fell back to give Quintana and Nibali added firepower in the final stages of the climb.
Zakarin then jumped off the lead with Domenico Pozzovivo (AG2R) on his wheel. Pozzovivo didn't appear to have much left in his legs and struggled to come through and take a turn. The most surprising development at this stage of the race was to see Jungles still in contact with the leaders considering that he has struggled on the climbs throughout the race. The gradient easing toward the end of the climb seemed to have suited him well.
Finally, Nibali had played enough games and went all in with a massive attack. He looked back at Quintana, but the Movistar rider wouldn't assist. Pinot crossed the finish seven minutes behind Landa with a six-second advantage on Pozzovivo and Zakarin. Jungles then proved strongest out of the remaining GC riders. He pulled the rest of the group across six seconds later. Nibali lost two seconds after being gapped in the final meters.
It would be over a minute until the pink jersey managed to get to the finish. Speaking to media while cooling down, Dumoulin responded to his performance by saying, "I tried to limit my loses, I think I did that really well... just bad legs today, I hope it's better tomorrow."
He now sits in second place, 38 seconds behind Quintana. Nibali and Pinot are both within 20 seconds of Dumoulin. Quintana's lead is by no means a done deal with the time trial looming on the final day. It's going to be crucial that he gains more time Saturday on the final mountain stage.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/giroditalia/status/868125493048094721" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
Mikel Landa (Team Sky) took the stage victory on an inspired solo finish, while Quintana crossed 8:21 behind in 16th. After being dropped on an earlier descent, Dumoulin once again got into trouble on the climb to Piancavallo and went off the back of the main group to finish 9:30 behind Landa.
The peloton's first split of the day occurred with over 100km to go in the stage. Team Sunweb sports director Aike Visbeek reported over the live broadcast that Dumoulin went for a natural break, and at that point, Movistar and Bahrain attacked. After the race, Dumoulin said that he made a "rookie mistake" and was just too far back at a crucial point in the race. Coming off of the Stage 18 controversy, Dumoulin was quickly put in a difficult position on Friday morning.
The day's early break, consisting of 14 riders, had a maximum advantage of 6:30, but once the peloton split during Movistar and Bahrain Merida's reported attack, they were swallowed up with about 95km to go. Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain Merida) and Quintana both had significant support within the lead group. Thibaut Pinot made the split along with some FDJ teammates. Former pink jersey-wearer Bob Jungles (Quick-Step Floors) was present in this group, which put him in a good position to earn back some time in the young riders classification after Adam Yates (Orica-Scott) was caught out behind with Dumoulin.
Dumoulin responded to the situation incredibly well. He didn't panic after seeing his rivals disappear up the road. There were other GC contenders, including Steven Kruijswik (Lotto NL-Jumbo), Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo), and Yates, who were also caught out by the early move. Quintana and Nibali's group extended its lead on the pink jersey to over a minute at its maximum advantage. Gradually, the gap closed and the race came back together with 90km to go riding up the Sella Chianzutan climb.
If the race wasn't exciting enough already, now it really got complicated. Very few of the GC contenders had any remaining teammates. While Dumoulin being isolated is nothing new in the Giro, Quintana riding without a single teammate with over half of the stage remaining was a new situation for the Columbian rider. Nibali, Pinot, and Jungles each had a teammate, but after reaching the top of the climb, it was going to be interesting to see who was going to do all the work for the remaining 87km.
The pace slowed significantly to allow the domestiques to rejoin the race lead, and the whole race came back together. A stage win was no longer an issue with a new breakaway forming and given a large advantage. The teams regrouped for all the main contenders to rest for the final effort of the day on the Piancavallo climb.
Once the peloton reached the bottom of the final climb, Movistar and Bahrain Merida began to apply serious pressure. Dumoulin was immediately thrown out the back and struggled to hold his teammate's wheel. They fought their way back to the rear of this decisive move, but the pace never slowed. Dumoulin lost contact again and fell back by 20 seconds. Once they got past the steepest part of the climb, Sunweb teammate Simon Geshke was doing a huge turn to hold the gap for Dumoulin. After Geshke pulled off, Dumoulin was left on his own and began to settle into a rhythm. Meanwhile, Pinot was attacking the GC group and opening a lead on his rivals.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/giroditalia/status/868114729771950080" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
After the support riders had exhausted their energy, the race exploded. Nibali made the first move and broke apart the remaining riders until only the top contenders were left. Quintana briefly was sent out the back but worked into the group when the pace eased. Excellent team tactics then played a huge factor. Jose Rojas (Movistar) and Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain Merida) had been sent up the road with the break and now fell back to give Quintana and Nibali added firepower in the final stages of the climb.
Zakarin then jumped off the lead with Domenico Pozzovivo (AG2R) on his wheel. Pozzovivo didn't appear to have much left in his legs and struggled to come through and take a turn. The most surprising development at this stage of the race was to see Jungles still in contact with the leaders considering that he has struggled on the climbs throughout the race. The gradient easing toward the end of the climb seemed to have suited him well.
Finally, Nibali had played enough games and went all in with a massive attack. He looked back at Quintana, but the Movistar rider wouldn't assist. Pinot crossed the finish seven minutes behind Landa with a six-second advantage on Pozzovivo and Zakarin. Jungles then proved strongest out of the remaining GC riders. He pulled the rest of the group across six seconds later. Nibali lost two seconds after being gapped in the final meters.
It would be over a minute until the pink jersey managed to get to the finish. Speaking to media while cooling down, Dumoulin responded to his performance by saying, "I tried to limit my loses, I think I did that really well... just bad legs today, I hope it's better tomorrow."
He now sits in second place, 38 seconds behind Quintana. Nibali and Pinot are both within 20 seconds of Dumoulin. Quintana's lead is by no means a done deal with the time trial looming on the final day. It's going to be crucial that he gains more time Saturday on the final mountain stage.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/giroditalia/status/868125493048094721" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
More 2017 Giro d'Italia Coverage
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- Stage 20 Results
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- Tejay Van Garderen Redeems Himself With Giro Stage Win
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