Pascal Ackerman takes photo finish win as crashes cause more GC drama on stage 11 of the Giro d'Italia
Cycling
Pascal Ackerman took a photo finish win from a bunch sprint on stage 11 of the Giro d'Italia after a day were crashes had caused more GC drama.
Stage 11 of the Giro d'Italia, finishing in the western city of Tortona was expected to be one suited to the sprinters before the arrival to the Alps, although it does feature a couple of small ascents. After the breakaway was successful yesterday however a group of six riders went clear hoping for a similar result.
The longest stage of this year's Giro there were early warning signs for stage 5 winner Kaden Groves who was worryingly out the back of the peloton with over 140km still to go.
The peloton was adamant that the breakaway would not succeed again though, holding the gap at around two to two and a half minutes.
As the wet weather began to take effect yet again. A slippery descent caused utter chaos. Firstly a crash involving the entirety of the podium saw Geraint Thomas, Primoz Roglic and Tao Geoghegan Hart all hit the deck. Whilst Thomas and Roglic were able to remount quickly, Geoghegan Hart was sadly forced to leave the race in an ambulance.
Moments later Movistar Team rider Oscar Rodriguez lost control on the same descent and ended up crashing into the side of a house.
This edition of the Giro d'Italia really is turning into more about who will be the last man standing. As the race calmed down slightly the breakaway still had 1:01 with 45km to go.
At the top of the final categorised climb of the day, Team Jayco AlUla took to the front of the peloton, upped the pace and ripped apart the peloton dropping numerous of the fast men and simultaneously halving the time gap to the break.
The last thing the GC teams wanted was an upping of the pace on another potentially dangerous descent. Thankfully though there were no further incidents.
With 20km to go Laurenz Rex was in front on his own some 25 seconds ahead of the bunch.
Sadly for the 23-year-old Belgian, despite a tremendous effort, Rex was swallowed up by the peloton with 5km to go.
Attention then turned to a bunch sprint finish. With most if not all of the sprinters having rejoined the peloton after Jayco AlUla's earlier acceleration, there were plenty of sprint trains battling for position at the front of the race.
A late crash caused some damage in the peloton but thankfully for the GC riders, it was within the last 3km.
In the final sprint, Mark Cavendish lead it out and seemed certain of victory but as Pascal Ackerman came up on one side Jonathan Milan came on the other. The finish was so tight both riders celebrated thinking they had won. After a photo finish Ackerman was the man adjudged to have been the winner.
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- wtf dudemij07-11-2026
- big rival … ridiculous.Ketterechts07-11-2026
- It would be great if the World Champion's jersey could be rotated among McNulty, Simmons, and Jorgenson. They threaded the needle perfectly. If each hadn't done exactly what he did, exactly when he did it, the race would have gone to one of the more heralded superstars. That said, how nice that this humble and hardworking guy gets his moment in the sun.
MarkFour07-11-2026 - This is a really interesting idea, which, if well prepared could even be very successful. Very little money needs to be involved for a first season and any success could lead to rapid interest from sponsors.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Hmmm, you seem to have a very convenient black and white view of things. Perhaps you haven’t been around much to discover how complex problems can become over time with people who know how to control, manipulate (or worse) others so gradually or subtly that you arrive at an irresolvable situation before you realise. This is how many inconveniences get introduced to the young, naïve, passionate or “desperate”, knowing they are not armed, protected or strong enough to defend themselves once it’s too late. Why do you think omerta culture is so widespread, why do you think so many people continue to go through so many awful things in life that others can’t understand anyone getting into? Life may be far more jolly for you but you would do well to understand (or reflect more on) the real world to refrain from being so quick to criticise those in a hard spot that may have genuine reason for speaking out.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Seriously do you think when somebody gets into a serious accident, the ambulance is called by the hurt person?🤦 there is always a buddy system in place for a risky job. police , firefighters etc so that if someone gets hurt, the other call that in.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment