"The boys were incredible" - Geraint Thomas praises teammates as INEOS leader safely navigates Giro d'Italia's gravel stage without incident

With stage 6 of the 2024 Giro d'Italia having been earmarked as a potential spoiler for the GC riders, INEOS Grenadiers controlled things at the front of the bunch throughout, keeping 2nd overall Geraint Thomas, safe from any drama.

"The boys were incredible," praised the Welshman post-stage in conversation with Cycling Pro Net. "It was hard all day and when you're climbing on the gravel it's a bit harder. It's just the stress because if it was normal tarmac it wouldn't be nearly as stressful but because it's the gravel, everyone wanted to be in a good position."

With Pelayo Sanchez taking the win from the breakaway, Thomas rolled across the line alongside his main rival, Tadej Pogacar 29 seconds down. With INEOS Grenadiers getting some criticism recently for their tactics however, riding on the front all day instead of UAE Team Emirates was again a topic for discussion in Thomas' post-stage interview.

"As I said, the boys did great," he replies. "Going on the gravel it was, we'll take the lead and dictate what we're doing. Less people in front of us, we know what's happening and after the last sector we just kept it going. It was just one of those, stay at the front and out of trouble. We weren't too fussed about the break."