Jack Haig "to aim for a place in the top-5" at the Giro d'Italia

After an impressive performance at the Tour of the Alps that saw Jack Haig finish third in the general classification, the Bahrain - Victorious rider is now confident of a top 5 finish at the upcoming Giro d'Italia.

“I would really like to aim for a place in the top-5. If I manage to do that in the Giro, then I can be happy. The fact that I finish the Tour of the Alps with a third place is nice in the run-up to the Giro," Haig tells WielerFlits. "In any case, I know that INEOS Grenadiers have a very strong squad, and Tao Geoghegan Hart is already in very good shape. I also know that my condition is slowly improving.”

The 29-year-old Australian will go into the Giro as the undisputed leader of Bahrain-Victorious and buoyed by the impressive form shown at the Tour of the Alps, Haig will understandably start the quest for the Maglia Rosa full of confidence. “I need some rest. I'm going to spend time at home with my family and then to Italy," Haig concludes.

“For Jack, this was his first race after the Tour of Catalonia and the altitude training. He mainly wanted to test his fitness here and he is happy with that. He still needs to improve a bit towards the Giro, but he is well on his way,” the teams sports director Franco Pellizotti adds. “We have a strong squad around Jack with Gino Mäder , Damiano Caruso and Santiago Buitrago . We have a lot of riders who can try something.”