With five riders in the first group, Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux concluded the fast twelfth stage of the Giro d’Italia between Sanremo and Cuneo in the lead of the team classification.
The riders of the World Team were attentive when the peloton split in two groups because of an acceleration of the sprinter’s teams in the approach of the final race hour.
The early breakaway of four riders still had a gap of 4 minutes with 40 kilometer to go, but they were caught in the final hectometers by a peloton of around 50 riders.
Alongside Barnabás Peák (13th), Domenico Pozzovivo and Jan Hirt reached the finish line in Cuneo in the same time as the winner and are now seventh and fourteenth in the provisional classification.
« I had the opportunity to sprint today, because our GC leaders had no trouble in reaching the finish line in the first group. The peloton went really fast in the final 100 kilometer, we rode at a speed of over 60 kilometer per hour to reduce the 7 minute gap to the breakaway. I have to say that we had a big advantage to ride comfortably downhill thanks to our aerodynamic bikes and tubeless Continental tires. » « It is the first time that I race longer than ten days in a row. The staff really helps us with recovery and we can maintain a good daily rhythm. I still feel pretty good and I hope can keep this feeling longer. Since our arrival in Italy and the Etna stage the intensity was never reduced. La Grande Partenza already seems such a long time ago. After this race I'll probably realize what a dream it was to make my Grand Tour debut in my home city. » « I came here to help Biniam Girmay in stages like these, together with Aimé De Gendt and Loïc Vliegen. After Bini left us, we managed to motivate each other again thanks to our good atmosphere. We want to race aggressively and defend the chances of our GC riders, who are doing incredibly well in this Giro. »
