Bernal on supporting Arensman's Giro podium ambitions: 'It's a kind of honour'

Egan Bernal (Netcompany Ineos) has described it as an honour to help support teammate Thymen Arensman on stage 16 of the Giro d’Italia as the British team moved a step closer to finishing on the podium with the Dutchman. 

On the fourth summit finish of the race to Carì, Visma | Lease a Bike set a vicious tempo, to the point where there were only six riders left when Davide Piganzoli finished his turn, and Jonas Vingegaard accelerated with 6.6km to go. 

Among the sextet were the Netcompany Ineos duo, Arensman and Bernal. When Vingegaard went, only Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM) tried to respond as the Ineos duo settled into their efforts. 

“I think it was easy to know what we have to do, like it's super difficult to follow Jonas [Vingegaard],” Bernal told Eurosport. 

“So I think we just had to pace our pace, and I think Thymen is a super strong guy and he did well,” said Bernal. 

A chasing group of six formed behind the rampant Vingegaard, including Arensman, Bernal, Gall, Piganzoli, Jai Hindley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) and Derek Gee-West (Lidl-Trek).

With the numerical advantage, Bernal helped Arensman in his podium pursuit, and the Dutchman made an acceleration inside the final 2km, which only Gall and Hindley could follow. 

In the end, Arensman battled his way to fourth on the stage, 1:14 behind Vingegaard and just three seconds behind Gall in second. Meanwhile, Bernal crossed the line in seventh, 2:04 behind the stage winner. 

Bernal was asked about his relationship with Arensman, and the Colombian champion had plenty of praise for the Dutchman, describing it as an honour to help him in his quest for the podium. 

“Yeah, I mean, we have raced a lot together, and I think he, as I said before, he's a super young talent,” said Bernal.

“For sure, he will have a lot of good years ahead. So I mean for me it's a kind of honour to share some races with him,” said Bernal.

As a result, Arensman moved back into third, having slipped one position after stage 14, now with a 33-second advantage over Hindley. Bernal also moved into tenth, 9:44 behind Vingegaard.

With five stages to the finish in Rome, two of which are mountain tests, Arensman sits in a strong position to improve his previous best Grand Tour finish of fifth in the 2022 Vuelta a España. 

The Netcompany Ineos duo’s performance on stage 16 only adds to the confidence that the team have in the Dutchman’s ability.

“We have always had the faith. That's what we are trying to do day by day with our feet on the ground, but obviously it’s a big ambition, because I think Thymen [Arensman] deserves to be on the podium,” said Bernal.