"Alaphilippe is a friend... I don't begrudge him this" - Matteo Trentin denied breakaway success by resurgent Alaphilippe on stage 12 of Giro d'Italia

After a quiet first week, Matteo Trentin starred on stage 12 of the 2024 Giro d'Italia, getting himself into the day's breakaway, before eventually crossing the line in 6th place.

"Many teams wanted the breakaway to get away very early, precisely to avoid the fierce battle to sit with them. I chose the right breakaway early in the race, took the right decision, but I was only away with two others. We rode very fast, the first hour even at 55 kilometres per hour," the vastly experienced Italian of the Tudor Pro Cycling Team, reflected in his post-stage interview with Eurosport. "We never grabbed more than half a minute and that first race hour cost me a lot of energy. I did get into the second, final break, but by then I was already through my best. I made the most of it."

In the end, victory on the day went to Julian Alaphilippe. After a tricky couple of years, seeing the Frenchman back to his race-winning best was a sight many viewers were delighted to see. Even Trentin, who missed out on stage win because of Alaphilippe's brilliance was more than a little happy to a resurgent, two-time former world champion silence his doubters.

"Alaphilippe is a friend. I saw him turn pro with the Quick-Step team, we then rode together as teammates for four years. So I don't begrudge him this enormously," Trentin concludes with a smile. "A champion who has so many problems but still comes back in style, that's nice to see."