Simon Yates still confident of defending Giro d'Italia lead despite difficulties on stage 18
Brit sees his lead halved to just 28 seconds


Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) showed weakness for the first time at the 2018 Giro d'Italia on Thursday.. Deep into Piedmont, at the Prato Nevoso ski station, the pink jersey drifted after attacks by Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb) and Chris Froome (Team Sky).
Maximilian Schachmann (Quick-Step Floors) won the stage from an escape group while around two kilometres back down the 13.9-kilometre final climb, Team Sky's Chris Froome attacked to follow an earlier move by team-mate Wout Poels.
Yates suffered and was unable to respond. Dumoulin, Domenico Pozzovivo (Bahrain-Merida), and Froome – second, third, and fourth overall – put 28 seconds into Yates.
"I'm not worried. I'm not worried," Yates said, after the stage and with two big mountain days left to defend his jersey before the final flat day in Rome on Sunday.
"Tomorrow suits me better. We'll see what the other teams do. Tomorrow should suit me better. Today was one big massive effort. We lost a bit of time.
"Today is very different to the next few days – today was one big effort in the final, and tomorrow has many passes, and longer climbs suit me much more. I am much more confident about tomorrow and the next day than I was about today."
Watch: Giro d'Italia stage 18 highlights
Stage 19 finishes at Jafferau, but climbs the Colle delle Finestre and Sestriere first. Stage 20 presents serious difficulties too, finishing at the Cervinia ski station after two category one climbs.
Dutchman Tom Dumoulin, the 2017 race winner, is now only 28 seconds behind the pink jersey. Froome sits fourth at 3-22 minutes.
"Will I crack? Good question. I don't know. I hope not," Yates continued. "For sure today was not a super day for me, as in the parcours. The next few days suit me much more.
"Everyone is expecting Tom to lose time to me every climb because he is a time trialist. But he is a classy rider. I did not have the legs to follow."
Yates had Froome's former helper Mikel Nieve pacing him to the line in the last kilometre. He has been in the lead for 13 days, since Mount Etna but now the cracks are beginning to show in his pink jersey defence.
"After I couldn't close the gap. I was really tired and I couldn't respond to the attacks, that's OK. Froome is still a long way down - I was watching Dumoulin," added Yates.
"I feel really good. I was only bad for one kilometre, so that's OK. I am still in the lead, I'm still in front. For me that's OK.
Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Gregor Brown is an experienced cycling journalist, based in Florence, Italy. He has covered races all over the world for over a decade - following the Giro, Tour de France, and every major race since 2006. His love of cycling began with freestyle and BMX, before the 1998 Tour de France led him to a deep appreciation of the road racing season.
-
-
Best bicycle insurance, including what you need to know and how to compare
Wondering how to protect your pride and joy? Our helpful guide tells you all you need to know about bicycle insurance
By Hannah Bussey • Published
-
Five talking points from stage eleven of the Giro d’Italia 2022
The Cycling Weekly highlights package from the stage which finally saw an Italian win at the home race this year
By Luke Friend • Published
-
Simon Yates to target stage wins after ending general classification challenge at Giro d'Italia
Team BikeExchange-Jayco rider to hunt stage wins in final two weeks
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Injury and heat see Simon Yates drop out of Giro d'Italia contention
Yates says he'll assess his injury after Monday's rest day
By Richard Windsor • Published
-
'I just tried to go as fast as possible' — Simon Yates on his Giro d'Italia time trial win
Team BikeExchange-Jayco rider beat Mathieu van der Poel by three seconds
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Simon Yates refuses to comment on being among Giro d'Italia favourites: 'I’ll let you guys make that decision'
Yates also refused to enter into any chat about being tipped as the bookies' second favourite to win the race
By Ryan Dabbs • Published
-
Simon Yates aims for podium at Giro d'Italia
Team BikeExchange-Jayco build team around Briton as he chases top-three again
By Adam Becket • Published
-
'If you don't try then you never know': Simon Yates after final day win at Paris-Nice
BikeExchange-Jayco rider attacked on Col d'Èze to take stage eight and seal second overall
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Simon Yates after Paris-Nice showdown: 'Not much you can do when Roglič is in second gear'
British BikeExchange-Jayco rider sits second overall after stage seven of Paris-Nice
By Adam Becket • Published
-
‘It could be one of the toughest races of our careers’: Tao Geoghegan Hart and Simon Yates share thoughts on Olympic road race
This year’s race will take place in brutal heat and humidity in Japan
By Alex Ballinger • Published