Rafal Majka fumes at Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL's curious tactics on stage 17 of Giro d'Italia

Stage 17 of the 2024 Giro d'Italia has seen some strange tactics from Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL. These tactics haven't gone unnoticed either, with UAE Team Emirates' Rafal Majka visibly showing his frustrations at the rival team.

Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL had raced hard to control the gap between peloton and breakaway, keeping things at around a minute between the two groups. With just over 60km to go, Kevin Vermaerke gave Romain Bardet something of a leadout, in the process catching the break and splitting the peloton into an elite group of GC contenders.

Having done the hard work and reeled in the break though, Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL completely stalled their work, with Vermaerke and Bardet dropping into the bunch, much to the confusion and dismay of the Maglia Rosa's loyal lieutenant, Rafal Majka.

Whether or not more moves are to come from the team of Bardet remains to be seen but with 50km to go at the time of writing, it seems perfectly set up for yet another Tadej Pogacar stage win, as the UAE Team Emirates leader benefits from the work of rival teams for the second day running.