High-end skinsuit a reason behind Simon Yates' astronomical time-trialing prowess

Simon Yates has flew to the win on the second stage of the Giro d'Italia, putting in three seconds on Mathieu van der Poel but as much as over 40 seconds to the likes of Miguel Ángel López, Giulio Ciccone and Emanuel Buchmann. Significant gains in a 9.2-kilometer long time-trial, specially for a rider who has never been classified as a time-trialist. So, what's behind Yates' success?

Firstly, as the Briton pointed out, this was a 12-minute effort to the victory. Last week at the Vuelta a Asturias he captured two stage wins, after making the decisive effort over climbs of similar duration, setting him up perfectly for the task at hand. In March, he finished fifth on the Paris-Nice time-trial which had similar duration and explosiveness, only behind the Jumbo-Visma trio (Roglic, van Aert and Dennis) and Stefan Küng - which had revealed the Briton was riding exceptionally well against the clock this year. However, his equipment is said to also have played a crucial role.

As cycling evolves, aerodynamics have become a subject of increasing importance. Yates is no stranger to riding skinsuits during even the toughest mountain stages, however in the time-trials he has worn - according to Cyclingnews' report - a costumized Vorteq skinsuit (branded as Ale, the team's official clothing sponsor).

It is reported that his custom skinsuit is the brand's most expensive item and of an extremely high price even for the top of the World Tour range, at £2,750. What is sure is that Team BikeExchange - Jayco and Yates have worked on a time-trial setup that has become quite successful, and can be a key part of his ambitions to win the Giro d'Italia.