Appetite comes with eating. And then Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek)after the imperious sprint to the finish line in Andora in the fifth stage of the Giro d’Italia 2024, he looks ahead to the next few days, studying carefully when he will be able to fire the next cartridges. If the class of 2000 manages to maintain this condition during the three weeks of the Corsa Rosa, well today can only be the beginning. Meanwhile, the Italian has taken the Ciclamino jersey, and confirming it until Rome will be his first objective.
We probably won’t have to wait long to see Milan back in action, given that already tomorrow, in the sixth stage starting from Genoa and arriving in Lucca, there are already chances of seeing another sprint. It will be a slightly more complicated stage than today’s, with the Bracco Pass to climb and the last fourth category GPM which ends at -21 km, but Lidl-Trek undoubtedly seems to have what it takes to hold on again the race closed. The Italian “seagull” has proven to hold up very well uphill, and if the breakaway is kept under control, tomorrow the No. 1 favorite will undoubtedly still be Jonathan Milan.
Big question mark regarding the fraction with the dirt roadeven if that doesn’t seem to be the stage that is tailored to the characteristics of the Italian. The native of Tolmezzo will then probably take a weekend breakwith the Foligno-Perugia time trial and the uphill finish in Prati di Tivo which will certainly be dedicated to the battle for the Maglia Rosa. A few more unknowns regarding the stage on Sunday 12 May, the Avezzano-Naples, which comes before the day of rest and has a choppy ending. It is a stage that is suited to long-distance escapes, and it will be difficult for the sprinters’ teams to control it all day. Plus i continuous tears in the ending are perfectly suited to an action from finisseurlike the one attempted by Filippo Ganna today.
Only two clear sprint opportunities in the second weekwhich will open with the arrival at high altitude in Cusano Mutri. Sprinters who will finally be able to become protagonists again the next day, Wednesday 15 March, when stage number 11 will see Francavilla a Mare as the finishing point. A fraction that includes a third category GPM in the first part, then descent and lots of flat terrain. Friday 17th will be an authentic billiard table, starting from Riccione and finishing in Cento after 179 km of pure plain for section 13.
Another weekend dedicated to the battle for the Pink Jersey, and opportunities that become fewer and fewer for the sprinters. In a tough but not impossible third week, the classic transfer stage is number 18, and after four days (plus rest) of climbs or time trials, the penultimate sprint will take place in Padua. Last hilltop located 100 km from the finish linewith the sprinters having plenty of time to organize themselves. Finally, the classic sprint will remain after the final catwalk, which will once again be in Rome.
Doing some quick math there are four safe opportunities for the sprinters, then counting tomorrow’s stage and the one arriving in Naples we reach six. Then there would be stage number 12 with arrival in Fano, but the walls with double-digit slopes mean that it will be difficult to see Milan as protagonists. There are possibilities to increase the number of victories for Jonathanwith the fight for the cyclamen jersey becoming increasingly heated.
