The eighth stage of the Giro consisted of almost 4,000 meters of elevation through the Apennines, with the 14.6km long and 7 percent steep final climb up to the ski resort Prati di Tivo forming the biggest challenge of the day. The last of the breakaway group was caught about 4km from the finish, and the stage victory was decided in a sprint from a small group of GC favorites. In the fight for the stage win, Pogačar accelerated, with Dani Martínez close on his wheel. The Slovenian, however, was too fast and took the day's win, with Dani finishing second. The Colombian BORA-hansgrohe rider thereby also obtained six bonus seconds, reaffirming his second place in the GC.
Results
From the Finish Line
Dani Martínez:
We came into this tough stage in second overall and we anticipated that Pogačar would continue to be super strong. The team rode a good pace on the final climb, so big thanks to them for the support. When the attacks came, I remained focused on Pogačar, and in the final 2km, I thought I might have an opportunity to go for the stage win. But he was so strong and I was pushed to the limit in the sprint in the end. But I’m pleased with this performance as we approach the first rest day shortly. The hardest parts of the Giro are still to come.
Enrico Gasparotto, Sports Director:
Our approach today was to focus on Dani Martinez throughout the day. The guys did a good job and, in the finale we were ready for any attacks with 5km to go. That ultimately didn’t happen, so we stayed focused on Dani for the sprint to the line. He did really well there. After this solid performance, we’ll keep on fighting. In the moment that it became clear that Pogačar wanted the stage win, we preferred to be conservative and gain seconds in the final sprint, based also on the headwind in the finale.