Video footage has emerged showing Marco Haller confronting a fan who tried to rip a bidon from his mouth after stage 12 of the Giro d’Italia.
The bizarre incident happened as Katusha-Alpecin rider Haller rode along after the stage finish with a bottle gripped between his teeth.
A fan then inexplicably puts his arm out and tries to pull the bidon from the Austrian’s mouth.
Haller stops his bike and confronts the fan, using some bad language and asking “what is wrong with you?”
>>> Five talking points from stage 12 of the Giro d’Italia 2019
The fan apologises and puts hands in the air, as a finish line steward runs in to separate the pair.
Haller then rides away while still criticising the fan.
The 24-second video of the incident was posted on Twitter after the stage.
Haller had been on the attack earlier in the day during the first major mountain on the race, eventually finishing 39th, 9-57 down on the winner.
The stage was taken by Bora-Hansgrohe workhorse Cesare Benedetti, who found himself in the day’s breakaway and battled hard to keep in contact with the front of the race.
Benedetti was part of a large 25-man breakaway that also included Jan Polanc (UAE Team Emirates) and finished over eight minutes ahead of the main GC contenders in this year's Giro.
It all came down to a sprint between that group, with Benedetti able to get ahead and hold his sprint in front of Caruso and Dunbar who were the only two able to get close.
Dunbar said he was “a bit disappointed” with his finish.
The Irishman said he felt strongest on the day but missed out on the win, taking a podium in his debut Grand Tour.
The Giro d’Italia continues on Friday with the race’s first summit finish, a 196km route from Pinerolo to the top of Lago Serrù.
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