“The road was completely slippery” - Antonio Morgado recounts mass crash chaos that wiped out UAE on Stage 2 of Giro d'Italia 2026

Antonio Morgado summed up UAE Team Emirates - XRG’s disastrous second day at the Giro d’Italia with a blunt assessment of the crash that changed the race before the finale into Veliko Tarnovo.

The Portuguese rider, who started the day in the white jersey after a strong opening stage, was among the UAE riders caught in the huge fall on wet roads inside the final 25 kilometres. Adam Yates also hit the deck and was seen covered in mud and blood, while Jay Vine was taken away from the race on a stretcher and loaded into an ambulance before his abandon was confirmed.

For UAE, what had looked like a stage with several tactical options quickly became a damage limitation exercise. Morgado was forced to change bikes after the crash and later lost contact when the pace lifted on the Lyaskovets Monastery Pass.

Speaking afterwards to Cycling Pro Net, Morgado said the danger had been obvious before the incident unfolded. “Yeah, I think everybody knew somebody was going to crash with this pavement,” he said. “The bad luck was with us.”

The crash came after a long day of rain and greasy road surfaces in Bulgaria. The peloton had only just brought back the breakaway of Diego Pablo Sevilla and Mirco Maestri when the bunch hit a slippery section and multiple riders went down.

Several UAE riders were involved, turning the team’s Stage 2 into one of the major stories of the day. Yates was able to remount, but the images of the British GC contender covered in mud and blood underlined how heavy the fall had been. Morgado also needed mechanical assistance before trying to chase back.

Asked what had happened from his perspective, Morgado pointed directly to the road conditions. “The road was completely slippery,” he said. “Everybody knew that. This is why there was a big fight. We went outside of the corner and we crashed.”

The scale of the crash forced the race to be temporarily neutralised while medical vehicles attended to the fallen riders. The peloton rolled slowly before racing resumed, but several riders were still chasing or receiving assistance when the stage came back to life.

The timing of the crash made the situation even more damaging. Within minutes of the restart, the race hit the Red Bull kilometre and then the final climb to the monastery of Lyaskovets, where the pace rose sharply.

Morgado, who had been among the riders suited to the punchy finale before the crash, was dropped almost as soon as the climb began. Yates was also left trying to manage the aftermath of his fall, while Vine’s abandon represented the clearest immediate loss for UAE.

Jan Christen gave the team one positive note, briefly following Jonas Vingegaard when the Dane attacked on the final climb before eventually finishing in the front group. But for UAE as a whole, Stage 2 was defined by the crash and its consequences. Morgado was asked how the team would now approach the Giro after such a heavy setback. “Let’s see,” he said. “I also feel a little bit of pain, but we are not going to quit.”

That message at least gave UAE something to hold onto after a chaotic day. The team left Veliko Tarnovo with bodies bruised, options reduced and its race already reshaped by one slippery corner.