Gee-West satisfied after Blockhaus battle as Ciccone signals stage hunting intent

The Canadian Lidl-Trek rider was dropped inside the final 7km as Visma | Lease a Bike turned the screw for Vingegaard, but he rallied in the closing kilometres and began to claw his way back through the remnants of the GC group, eventually finishing eighth, 1:42 down.

“I’m happy with where I ended up,” Gee-West said after the finish in the flash interview. “I started coming back on guys at the end. For myself, because it started so hard, it’s not the best climb to try and end up in the win, but I’m happy with where the legs were.”

The Blockhaus finale proved every bit as brutal as expected. Vingegaard attacked with 5.5km remaining and rode clear to take the stage, while Felix Gall and Jai Hindley completed the podium. Behind them, the climb became a test not only of legs, but also positioning, with strong winds making even the act of sitting in the wheels a battle.

“It’s brutal,” Gee-West said of the conditions. “You’re doing a 40 minute effort and then you’ve got to fight with guys to try and do a little bit less. It’s another element 240km into the day that you don’t want to be thinking about, but it makes it an interesting climb.”

Although Gee-West could not follow the decisive move, his assessment of the day was largely positive. The Canadian believes he is moving in the right direction as the Giro heads deeper into the mountains.

“Every day I’m feeling a little bit better,” he said. “Hopefully, if that continues for two more weeks, then things will be looking good.”

Lidl-Trek also had reason to be encouraged by Giulio Ciccone, who finished seventh, two seconds ahead of Gee, after a strong ride on home roads. Gee suggested the pair had tried to work together late on, though communication proved difficult amid the chaos of the finale.

“It’s his region and his climbs,” Gee-West said of Ciccone. “At the end there, I wanted to try and communicate with him, maybe give a pull and return the favour, but in the last corner he took off. I thought I could do so, but he had the legs.”

For Ciccone, the performance did not alter his stated ambitions at this Giro. Asked whether his ride showed he was now Lidl-Trek’s GC leader, the Italian quickly pushed back.

“No, no, no,” Ciccone said. “Like I say, I want to win a stage. I think with today it’s pretty clear, and now let’s see. Let’s see a new strategy for the next days.”

A strong chance for the Italian to take a stage win could come as soon as tomorrow, with a stage that looks tailor made for him and features an explosive finale into Fermo. He will be hugely motivated too, with the stage starting in his hometown.