Ponte di Legno (Italy) (AFP)
Ecuadorian Richard Carapaz has named Italian Vincenzo Nibali, his runner-up in the Giro's overall standings, as his "main rival" after the 16th stage on Tuesday in Ponte di Legno (north).
"The Mortirolo, which is a very tough climb, has brightened the situation and now we know that Nibali is the first opponent," said Carapaz.
The Ecuadorian has refused to commit already in the assumptions on the advance that seems preferable to him against the clock next Sunday in Verona (17 km).
"We still have a lot of kilometers to go, but at this time of the race, we can be happy with our advantage," said the wearer of the pink jersey, which is 1 minute 47 seconds ahead of Nibali and now 2 minutes 09 sec on the Slovenian Primoz Roglic, the best rider of the trio but the big loser of the 16th stage.
"It was a very difficult stage, the altitude of the course and the bad weather in the last part of the race combined, but it finally went well," said the Ecuadorian.
Asked about Roglic, he replied: "I was thinking a little about saving time before the final time trial, the Mortirolo is hard for everyone, it was a difficult time and in the end I had Since we could save time, we drove with Nibali. "
Carapaz highlighted the work of his team Movistar, with two riders around him (Pedrero then Amador, Landa) in the Mortirolo. He added that he did not panic about Nibali's attack 8 kilometers from the summit: "We played caution, that's what I wanted, we knew how to disarm it."
Carapaz, who turns 26 on Wednesday, has been wearing the pink jersey since Saturday (14th stage). He finished 4th in the Giro last year.
? 2019 AFP