00:00That is hugely impressive from Juan Ayuso. What a statement he's made here.
00:05He waited, he was patient, and when he delivered the blow, it was an absolute killer move from Juan Ayuso.
00:11A winner at the Giro d'Italia. The battle for second place is going to go the way of his teammate, Isaac Del Toro.
00:18It's all UAE at the finish line. Ben Aal in a brilliant third place.
00:22Stage 8 of the Giro d'Italia, 197 kilometres from the Adriatic coast inland to a finish in Castel Raimondo in Marke.
00:36A lot of climbing along the way, and from a long way out, many of the riders will have earmarked this stage for the first bona fide chance of a breakaway.
00:46Maz Pedersen included, of course, no longer in the Malia Rosa that belonged to Primoz Roglic once more of Red Bull Bora Hansgraer.
00:53Juan Ayuso in the white jersey alongside Maz Pedersen and Primoz Roglic at the start line for what would no doubt be a fast and furious start
01:01as riders rolled out of Giulianova and on towards kilometre zero. A big fight immediately for the breakaway of the day.
01:10The Wout van Aert thoroughly involved, prizing repeated groups away, but nothing in the opening kilometres seemed to stick.
01:18That was until Mattia Catanio, David De Preto and Maz Pedersen in the Malia Ciclamino got off the front and held on to a stubborn advantage of 20-25 seconds.
01:29Repeated attempts to try and get across failed from a number of teams, more than a dozen teams, trying to get in the breakaway of the day that really mattered.
01:37The battle in the end went on for 87 kilometres through the first sprint of the day at Rocca Fluvione,
01:43where Maz Pedersen added to his points in the Malia Ciclamino before eventually those three riders dropped back to the peloton.
01:50And the next attacks came. This time Nairo Quintana with a couple of riders from Palti visit Malta,
01:57including Davide Piganzoli, their team leader in the general classification.
02:01Alessandro Tornelli, though, went over the top of the Croce di Casale with his teammate Piganzoli, who crossed the line in first place.
02:11But eventually those riders were caught as well and the group came back together again.
02:16More attacks going off the front before eventually, and bit by bit, a 20-rider breakaway did go clear as they approached the big climb of the day,
02:26the Category 1 Sassoteto climb.
02:30The last of the riders to make the junction was Manuele Tarozzi from VF Group Bariani.
02:37The King of the Mountains, Lorenzo Fortunato, went through the second sprint at San Arno in first place.
02:43Then Roman Bardet attacked the 20-rider group towards the top of the big Category 1 climb of the day,
02:49but Fortunato had enough to come round the Frenchman and take the maximum 40 points to extend his lead in the King of the Mountains competition.
02:58Two categorised climbs remaining, but the breakaway at the front of the race was starting to shatter
03:03as the peloton started to show signs that they would allow, potentially, the Malia Rosa to change hands.
03:09Two of the Astana riders, Diego Ulissi and Lorenzo Fortunato, in the front group,
03:13both riding relatively high in the general classification and both above Primoz Roglic in the virtual GC on the road.
03:22Igor Arrieta then playing his part for UAE Team Emirates in this 20-rider move.
03:27And then Diego Ulissi and Wilco Kelderman, with 50 kilometres to go, went solo,
03:31breaking away the constituent parts of the breakaway.
03:33They were joined by Luke Plapp and Igor Arrieta.
03:35And then towards the top of the Montelago climb, Luke Plapp attacked, went over the top of the climb and was not seen again.
03:46Wilco Kelderman, Diego Ulissi and Igor Arrieta riding for a battle for second place at the finish line in Castel Raimondo
03:54as the time gap continued to grow to the front of the race.
03:57Lorenzo Fortunato in a chase group, two minutes and five seconds down on Luke Plapp.
04:02Plapp went over the Red Bull Kilometre in first place as the chase behind in the fourth group
04:08started to close on the Arrieta and Diego Ulissi, Wilco Kelderman groups.
04:13Arrieta was then caught back after an attack by Diego Ulissi and Wilco Kelderman
04:17as Luke Plapp went over the final categorised climb of the day and towards a victory by a handsome margin in the end.
04:24The first ever stage of a grand tour for the popular and talented Australian Luke Plapp,
04:29the winner in style from a 20-rider breakaway of stage eight of the Giro d'Italia, his first world tour win.
04:38So Luke Plapp, the winner.
04:40But after that then, Diego Ulissi and Wilco Kelderman came to the line.
04:44Ulissi in third place had to wait until the Malia Rosa of Primoz Roglic came across the line
04:49before it was confirmed that for the first time in his long career, he would wear the Malia Rosa.
04:54The winner of the stage, though, Luke Plapp, and he did it solo and in style.
04:59A 38-second lead ahead of Wilco Kelderman and Diego Ulissi in third place.
05:04Ulissi then overcome by emotion, pulling on the pink jersey and giving it a kiss to boot.
05:09He leads the Giro d'Italia by a slender margin to his teammate, Lorenzo Fortunato, in second place at 12 seconds.
05:16Roglic drops to third at 17 seconds.
05:19Maz Pedersen extended his lead still further in the Malia Ciclamino.
05:23Lorenzo Fortunato added a huge amount of points to his lead in the King of the Mountains competition.
05:27And Juan Ayuso, in the white jersey, closed the gap to Primoz Roglic by one second.
05:33At sprinting, Roglic, to close the gap to three seconds, he leads by six seconds to Isaac del Toro.
05:46And Juan Ayuso, in the white jersey, he leads by six seconds to his lead in the King of the Mountains competition.
Commenti