'Maybe too early' - Leknessund admits timing of his attack proved costly

Bettiol's attack on the Ungiasca climb (4.7km at 7.1%) caught everyone in the breakaway. The Italian held a 30-second gap to the line on the descent into Verbania, with Leknessund leading the chase home in second and Jasper Stuyven (Lidl-Trek) third. 

The win was XDS Astana's third stage of the 2026 Giro after Guillermo Thomas Silva and Davide Ballerini's earlier successes, and Bettiol's first since the Boucles de la Mayenne in June 2024. The 32-year-old Italian, who won the Tour of Flanders in 2019 and stage 18 of the 2021 Giro to Stradella, returns to winning at the kind of finish that has long suited him.

Leknessund has been one of the most active riders of the 2026 Giro. The Norwegian has the second-most attack kilometres of any rider in the field this year, and his three second places have come from different breakaway moves. 

His 2023 Giro pedigree, in which he finished eighth overall and wore the maglia rosa for five days, had marked him as one of Uno-X Mobility's most likely stage winners heading into the race.

Speaking after the line, the Norwegian was clear about how the day had played out.

"I felt good but it was actually, even though we went quite slow or easy when we had 10 minutes, the heat made it into a really hard day, I think for everyone. In the last climb I felt good. People were dropping and I felt I had more left. So my best opportunity today was taking the climb and arriving alone, especially with Bettiol."

"Maybe I did too early, but I think Bettiol was as strong as me in the climb. So if we arrived to the finish together, it would also be really hard. So I had to get a gap as big as possible."

Broadcasters captured a moment of apparent frustration from Leknessund on the line, which the Norwegian was happy to deny. "I don't think I shouted anything."

The second 2nd place of the 2026 Giro and the third of his career was not the result Leknessund had been chasing across the opening fortnight, and he was open about that on the line.

"It's not bad to be second, but it's my third second place in the Giro and I would have given them for a win. So it's a good result, but I still need to chase that win."