Juan Ayuso's coach blames bad luck for Giro d'Italia disappointment: "He would have undoubtedly finished ahead of Carapaz"

Juan Ayuso came to the 2025 Giro d'Italia full of ambition and hope, with the target of claiming his first ever Grand Tour GC win. Sadly for the Spaniard however, things haven't exactly gone to plan.

According to Ayuso's coach, Inigo San Millan, the reason behind Ayuso's disappointing performance is quite simply bad luck. “It was the crash that ultimately broke him," he explains in conversation with El País. "Juan suffered a deep cut in his knee that required stitches. The impact also caused trauma that led to swelling and a buildup of synovial fluid, which was very uncomfortable and painful during the stages, and even while walking.”

“In a stage race, any serious crash or injury becomes a major handicap to performance. That’s because the body’s priority shifts to regenerating damaged tissue and healing the injury,” continues the explanation of Ayuso's coach. “To do that, the body diverts a lot of energy resources toward recovery, resources that are also crucial for performance. Step by step, the energy deficit and fatigue increase, and as a result, he loses much of his physical capability. Unfortunately, even though his knee was starting to improve, in a stage race at today’s pace, that energy loss just can’t be recovered.”

San Millan has no doubt though, Ayuso would have been right in Maglia Rosa winning contention if he could have only avoided that crash on the 'mini Strade Bianche' stage 9. “Juan was extremely well-prepared, with the best numbers of his life right before coming here. He made a huge leap in quality this year," he insists firmly. "That physiological capacity from the early season races doesn’t just disappear. If Juan had stayed in good shape, with the wattages he had, he would have undoubtedly finished ahead of Richard Carapaz. But after the crash, we never saw those numbers again.”

And despite because this Giro d'Italia dream has fallen flat for Ayuso, San Millan again has no doubt that there is Grand Tour success in his rider's future. “He’ll continue to develop, just like Tadej Pogacar, who, even though he was already the best at 22 or 23, is only now reaching physiological maturity at 25 or 26. Juan’s best years are still ahead," he concludes. "If we can continue guiding his growth like we are now, we’ll have, at least in my humble opinion, a rider in the mould of Contador to enjoy for years to come."