“We haven’t worn the Maglia Rosa for a very long time” - Quick-Step DS brought to tears in the team car by Paul Magnier's Giro d'Italia win

Paul Magnier’s dramatic sprint victory on the opening stage of the 2026 Giro d’Italia sparked emotional scenes inside the Soudal - Quick-Step team car, with veteran sports director Davide Bramati openly overwhelmed as the Frenchman sprinted into the Maglia Rosa in Burgas.

The 22-year-old delivered one of the biggest wins of his young career on Friday evening after surviving the chaotic crash-marred finale to beat Tobias Lund Andresen and Ethan Vernon on Stage 1 of the Giro.

Shortly after the finish, Soudal - Quick-Step released footage from inside the team car showing Bramati shouting into the radio as Magnier crossed the line before becoming visibly emotional in the aftermath of the victory. The clip quickly spread across cycling social media.

Speaking afterwards to TuttoBiciWeb, the experienced Italian sports director admitted the moment carried huge significance for the team after several difficult seasons at the Giro d’Italia. “I shouted ‘Chapeau’ with all the breath I had left, because we hadn’t worn the Maglia Rosa at the Giro for a very long time,” Bramati explained.

From the team car, Bramati and the rest of the Soudal - Quick-Step staff watched the finale unfold from the front row as the race exploded into chaos inside the final kilometre. “Chapeau guys,” Bramati said repeatedly over the radio. “Winning like that really gives you enormous satisfaction.”

The emotions surrounding the victory were amplified even further by memories of the team’s disastrous start to last year’s Giro, when Mikel Landa crashed out during the opening stage of the race.

For Bramati, Magnier’s success in Burgas therefore represented far more than simply an early Grand Tour stage win. “This jersey means a lot, because last year we were unlucky,” Bramati explained. “We lost Landa right on the first stage, and now, again on the first stage, we’ve taken the pink jersey.”

The Italian also praised the entire Soudal - Quick-Step squad for both their work during the stage itself and their preparation leading into the Giro opener. “It was a happy day yesterday and naturally it still is today, now that we have the leader’s jersey,” Bramati said. “The riders were all incredible, but they had also been excellent in the days beforehand. It had really been a long time since we last wore pink.”

Despite decades spent inside team cars at the highest level of the sport, Bramati admitted victories like Magnier’s still generate huge emotion. The final kilometre in Burgas descended into disorder after a major crash split the peloton and wiped out several leading sprint contenders, but Magnier and Soudal - Quick-Step managed to stay near the front throughout the chaos before the Frenchman launched his winning sprint.

“Chapeau to my riders a thousand times again,” Bramati said. “They were all, all, incredible.”

Magnier’s victory not only secured the first Grand Tour leader’s jersey of his career, but also handed Soudal - Quick-Step one of their most emotionally significant Giro d’Italia moments in recent years.