Giro d’Italia: Ewan considers abandoning mid-race to prepare for Tour de France
A fraught and crash-loaded finale of phase 5 of the Giro d’Italia proved no impediment for Caleb Ewan (Lotto Soudal) to assert an impressive bunch dash victory forward of Giacomo Nizzolo (Qhubeka-Assos) and Elia Viviani (Cofidis).
Nizzolo and Viviani have each already been on the sprinters’ podium in the Giro d’Italia in an similar buy on stage 2 guiding Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Fenix), but 3 times later on Ewan leapfrogged ahead of the two Italians to clinch the fourth Giro d’Italia stage acquire of his career. Ewan has also gained five stages at the Tour de France.
“The initial one particular in a Grand Tour is generally the toughest to get, so I hope there are a good deal a lot more to appear,” the 26-12 months-previous explained to reporters.
Nonetheless, Ewan is hunting for stage wins in all three Grand Excursions and he also gave solid hints later on on that he may well give up the Giro all over the midway position to start out constructing for July.
“For me it’s even now also early to pull out of the Giro, I’ll see how I feel all over phase 10 or 11,” Ewan reported. “We’ll observe the problem and then I want to prepare for the Tour de France, but I’ll undoubtedly be listed here tomorrow [Thursday].”
In a separate job interview, he also dominated out heading for the details jersey, which yet again proposed it was probable he would depart the Giro early, a course of action he has presently taken in 2019 promptly just after winning stage 11, and also in 2017 and 2016.
Ewan reported that he had not witnessed any of the crashes all through the stage, which saw Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious) and Pavel Sivakov (Ineos Grenadiers) abandon the race and Joe Dombrowski (UAE Group Emirates) get rid of a major volume of time.
“The very first 50 percent of the phase was simple, no anxiety, and then there were being crosswinds and the ultimate was very hazardous,” he reflected.
“I imagine we did a fantastic job to stay out of trouble. It is usually rather tricky for a large bunch on streets like these, but we just cannot end in the middle of nowhere possibly.
“The dash to the last corner was easy, but the 20 kilometres before that were quite technical and we had to stay at the front due to the fact I did not want to get caught out by any accelerations. The crew did a terrific job keeping me there and they did a excellent career of placing me in the place,” he added.
Ewan stated that he concentrates so a lot on his sprinting at the end of a race that he does not recall all the information of the wins in and of by themselves. He mentioned that he by no means remembered “anywhere that I have received or what town it is. To be trustworthy, I really do not even know where I am now.”
Maybe the trickiest moment of Ewan’s smooth and extremely focussed route in direction of victory arrived when he and Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Fenix) briefly entangled near to the obstacles just just before the dash began, with Merlier suffering a dropped chain.
Ewan claimed he did not assume the two had actually collided, but that the two experienced been squeezed collectively when a rider commenced dropping positions, and Merlier, in any circumstance, did not blame the Australian later on for fighting for his sprint.
“It was a very technological finale, so it was very essential to be in the proper spot, and I picked Tim’s wheel due to the fact he confirmed the other working day [on stage 2] that he was the quickest.
“I was a small bit boxed in, but I observed an opening on the remaining and ducked by it so I could go for it.”
Ewan did not feel that the two truly physically produced make contact with, although he claimed that he would want to search at the video clip of the finish to examine. “We both equally had to go in the direction of the barrier when a rider came back as a result of the bunch, but I do not consider we touched,” he added.
Subsequent Merlier’s mechanical, Ewan jumped by means of to Viviani’s again wheel, and then handed both of those the Cofidis racer and Nizzolo for his 1st win due to the fact the UAE Tour back again in late February.
Ewan’s following prospect will likely be in Termoli, in two times time, which would place the 26-12 months-aged into double figures for Grand Tour stage wins. But occur what may, Ewan’s 2021 Giro d’Italia is now on observe.
