Tuesday May 7, 2024 at 5:29 PM
Phil Bauhaus ended up in third place in the fourth Girori stage, but that result could actually be stolen from him afterwards. “Everyone has stayed straight, that’s the most important thing,” he said – by analogy with the also critical Tim Merlier Eurosport.
After the short but powerful climb of the Capo Mele, things went downhill again in the penultimate kilometer, causing the peloton to launch into the last kilometer at high speed. “To be honest, I’m not a fan of a finish like today. We go down at more than 80 kilometers per hour with a whole peloton. That’s not necessary, is it? For me it is more important that everyone has stayed straight than any result.”
It is mainly that high speed that bothered Bauhaus. “We all take a lot of risks, because every team needs results. And I also know: bunch sprints are always dangerous. But to do it descending… I had an acceleration of 58 crowns. My mechanic said he had never put such a gear on a bike in 26 years. I don’t know if we should do it this way.”
Bauhaus was happy with his own result, not even that far behind winner Jonathan Milan. “It was already a tough start to the week for our team, we didn’t have the results we wanted yet. Then a third place in the Giro is a good result to build on.”
