The Grenadiers safely cross the line in the peloton, with @GeraintThomas86 moving second as Bruno Amirail takes the maglia rosa from the break. Full focus now on tomorrow's stage (after a warm shower of course!) 👊 #Giro
"The whole team will have to be at the top of their game" - INEOS DS anticipates tough day in Giro d'Italia mountains
CyclingSunday, 21 May 2023 at 13:00
INEOS Grenadiers had the idea in mind to give away the pink jersey and on stage 14 of the Giro d'Italia they made it happen, letting the breakaway arrive to the finish with a whole 21 minutes of advantage over the peloton. In view of the bigger picture, the British team must continue to stay attempt in the final day of the second week.
“We are very happy with the situation as it is now. The plan this morning was to leave the pink jersey, preferably to a guy who was far enough down in the general classification," INEOS DS Matteo Tosatto told Eurosport. "The forces are already well underway after two weeks of racing, we absolutely wanted our riders to conserve as much energy as possible in view of the third week. They didn't have to dip into their reserves to control the breakaway today, so it's perfect."
Adter a sharp start where Laurens de Plus and Thymen Arensman made the effort to shut down potentially dangerous move for the GC, INEOS eventually let a large group go up the road which did not include anyone who could threaten the race overall. However the quality was enough that no-one in the peloton would want to chase and so INEOS could take the stage as they wanted, which was ultimately a calm pace all throughout the day which allowed Bruno Armirail to take the necessary 18 minutes he needed to jump into the race lead.
"It was again a very complicated stage given the rain and the cold. The instruction for the boys was to ride conservatively, so as not to lose energy unnecessarily," he continues. "In addition, losing the jersey rose will allow Geraint to return to the hotel more quickly, which is essential on a Grand Tour, and particularly when the weather is unfavorable."
Groupama - FDJ start stage 15 in the race lead, Thomas is now second in the GC but the situation with his rivals remains the same. On the mountains of Lombardia there will be several opportunities for there to be attacks and the Welshman will continue to be put to the test in a Giro that sees him closer than ever of finally conquering the pink jersey.
"Tomorrow's day will be very important for the general classification, the climbs are quite short but very steep. The whole team will have to be at the top of their game to arrive at the rest day ahead of our opponents," Tosatto concluded.
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