"For the moment, enduring the pain" - Juan Ayuso still suffering from gravel crash at the Giro d'Italia

Juan Ayuso faces stage 13 of the Giro d'Italia today, and it will be another test. Currently in second overall, he is still suffering in his leg after his fall on the gravel stage that required several stiches.

The Valencian claims to be feeling better day by day and adapting to running with pain, "Getting better day by day, I would have liked not to have this pain, but you have to know how to live with it, try to make it better every day and, for the moment, enduring the pain."

On whether today is a good day for the overall riders like him, Roglic or Del Toro to play for the stage, he believes it will be, "I think so, I think the final circuit is tough and it's going to select the race a lot, I think the final is going to select the race."

However, in order to be more adapted to its characteristics, he would have preferred it to be longer climb (there will be two ascents of the 800-meter Monte Berico with a 7.6% gradient):

"I would have liked it to be a little longer, but well it's going to be tough and we're going to get to the last climb pretty much selected."

We'll see what happens. Given what we have seen in the last stages it seems that these finishes are better suited to Isaac del Toro, although we will have to see if other riders like Tom Pidcock or Wout van Aert, outside of the general classification, can be there. We'll also have to see if Primoz Roglic is okay, as it's also a very much his finish for a his profile.

Will Ayuso be able to make a statement today? Or could he lose time? Whatever the case, Ayuso will want to be making in-roads on Del Toro's lead as soon as possible.