Simon Yates has finished safely in the bunch sprint on stage 13 of the Giro d’Italia to maintain his race lead.
The Mitchelton-SCOTT rider has a 47second advantage from Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb) ahead of a much-awaited weekend of racing, including the famous Zoncolan finish tomorrow.
“The guys did a really good job keeping me in the front, and then once the sprinters came to the front I was safely in the peloton so it was OK,” said Yates.
“It was the easiest day we’ve had so far, but no race is easy. I’m looking forward to tomorrow now. I was in the front all day. I didn’t actually see or speak to too many people. I was just relaxing with the guys up there.
“I know nothing about the Zoncolan, I’ve never reconned it – I’ve only seen it on TV. I hope to have good legs and, if so, I’ll try something.
“It’s been a hard race every day, except today. Everyone is tired and everyone is talking about the Zoncolan but if someone goes too deep tomorrow, they might pay the price the day after, which is another very difficult stage.”
