Italian Enrico Battaglin wins Giro d'Italia stage five sprint whilst Dennis holds on to GC lead

Break of four spent most of the day out front, but the battle for first became a sprinter's game by the end

Enrico Battaglin wins stage five of the 2018 Giro d'Italia

(Image credit: LUK BENIES/AFP/Getty Images)

Italian rider Enrico Battaglin (LottoNL-Jumbo) won stage five of the Giro d'Italia, on a day that was characterised by a break group of four riders who escaped the peloton in the opening kilometres.

The sprint finish left little dent in the GC, with Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing Team) holding on to the Maglia Rosa for one more day, followed closely by Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb), one second behind and Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) third at 17s.

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Michelle Arthurs-Brennan

Michelle Arthurs-Brennan the Editor of Cycling Weekly website. An NCTJ qualified traditional journalist by trade, Michelle began her career working for local newspapers. She's worked within the cycling industry since 2012, and joined the Cycling Weekly team in 2017, having previously been Editor at Total Women's Cycling. Prior to welcoming her daughter in 2022, Michelle raced on the road, track, and in time trials, and still rides as much as she can - albeit a fair proportion indoors, for now.