50 shades of Vingegaard: the Dane takes second stage win at Giro 2026

50 professional wins! Jonas Vingegaard chose the slopes of Corno alle Scale to reach the milestone, and he did so with seemingly minimal effort, almost guided to victory more by the intentions of his rivals than by his own ambition (as he himself admitted). It was Felix Gall’s Decathlon CMA CGM team that kept the race under control, with the Austrian attacking bravely in the final 3 kilometres — only to see the Dane immediately respond with a decisive acceleration 800 metres from the finish.

On the brutal final kilometres leading to the summit above Bologna, Giulio Pellizzari suffered badly — eventually conceding 1’28” — while Maglia Rosa Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain Victorious) produced a superb ride, finishing 5th at 41 seconds. The Portuguese rider can now realistically dream of holding onto the race lead even after Tuesday’s time trial.

Ciccone on the attack, Decathlon closing in

Once again, the opening hour is marked by relentless attacks and counterattacks, until a group of eight riders finally force their way clear: Jonas Geens (Alpecin–PremierTech), Martin Marcellusi (Bardiani CSF 7 Saber), Lorenzo Milesi, Einer Rubio (Movistar), Tim Naberman (Picnic PostNL), Mattia Bais (Polti VisitMalta), Sakarias Koller Løland (Uno-X Mobility) and Davide Ballerini (XDS Astana).

Visma | Lease a Bike are willing to let the breakaway build an advantage, but Decathlon CMA CGM have other ideas and keep the escapees firmly within reach. “My teammates will have time to rest tomorrow and also on the day of the time trial — today it’s only right to give everything,” Felix Gall said before the start.

On the only gently rising section of the opening half of the stage, towards Monte della Capanna, and taking advantage of the fact that the leaders are only two minutes up the road, Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) launches a counterattack. He is joined by Diego Ulissi (XDS Astana) and Toon Aerts (Lotto Intermarché), and together they quickly bridge across to the eight riders out front.

Vingegaard's last km action

The stage was inevitably going to be decided on the climb to Corno alle Scale, with Giulio Ciccone going all in. He dropped the rest of the breakaway, including Einer Rubio, the last rider to give way, and tried to hold on. But the 1’30” advantage with which he reached the toughest section of the climb was not enough, as behind him Decathlon CMA CGM and Visma | Lease a Bike raised the pace, leading to Felix Gall’s acceleration — one that only Jonas Vingegaard was able to follow.

Further back, Giulio Pellizzari was losing contact, while his teammate Jai Hindley did not look particularly sharp either. With 1,600 metres to the summit, Ciccone was caught and passed by Gall and Vingegaard, who then battled for the stage win. After sitting on his rival’s wheel throughout, Jonas finally made his move with 800 metres to go, launching a sharp acceleration that left the Austrian with no response. At Corno alle Scale, his Maglia Azzurra shone brightly, but Gall confirmed himself as Vingegaard’s number one rival for the next two weeks. Finishing in third place was an excellent Davide Piganzoli, Vingegaard’s final domestique, once again proving the Dane can count on some of the strongest support riders in the race.

Tomorrow is a rest day, but Tuesday brings a crucial stage for the Giro: the 42 km Massa–Viareggio time trial, one designed for pure specialists and potentially even more damaging than a mountain stage.

The Results

STAGE RESULT
1 – Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) – 184 km in 4h20’21”, average speed 42.404 km/h
2 – Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) – 12″
3 – Davide Piganzoli (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) – 34″

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1 – Afonso Eulalio (Bahrain Victorious)
2 – Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) – 2’24”
3 – Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) – 2’59”

Just seconds after crossing the finish line, stage winner Jonas Vingegaard said: “We didn’t want to ride for the stage win — it was Decathlon who took control of the race. It’s always nice to win, especially for my teammates, who worked hard all day. I’m happy for Davide Piganzoli finishing third; he’s a special guy. I’m not in the Maglia Rosa, but I’m exactly where I wanted to be at this point in the Giro.”