IAM Cycling flirted with victory for the second consecutive day at the Giro d’Italia. But the scenario was very different under the warm Tuscan sun. If Sylvain Chavanel just missed out on a win on the climb up to Abetone, Matteo Pelucchi came even closer to victory by being barely out-paced by André Greipel (Lotto-Soudal) in the sprint for victory of the sixth stage. 

This excellent second place will give the Swiss team a little more confidence as they tackle their first grand tour of the season, and face even more rugged and demanding stages in the near future. When asked to evaluate his day, Matteo Pelucchi (26) was divided between two feelings. 

“I did not win, and I am very disappointed not to have been able to return the favor to all my teammates who worked so hard for me. They did a fantastic job today to put me in an ideal position. But they also sacrificed themselves, just like Saramotins has done since Monday to help me play my card for this stage which was reserved for the sprinters; they encouraged me, guided me over the hills and made sure that I would be able to finish the previous stages within the time limit,” Pelucchi said. 

“But I must be content with this 2nd place, considering how much I have suffered from the injuries that accompanied my crash on Sunday. I still feel the pain in my ankle, which must affect my performance. This is by no means an excuse because I did give everything I had when we were sprinting for the line today.”

Kjell Carlström, directeur sportif for IAM Cycling along with Thierry Marichal, was very satisfied with his sprinter’s performance. 

“I have no regrets about his sprint. I think he was faster than Greipel and was coming on the strongest in the final meters. In this case, he may have decided to put on the afterburners a touch too late, since he missed out by very little. It’s important to note that Matteo, dropped on the climb today, was able to get back to the pack thanks to the hard work of his teammates, notably Saramotins, while also saving some strength for the sprint. And then everything worked perfectly with a lot of effort being made in the final kilometers by Stef Clement, Roger Kluge and Heinrich Haussler. I’m really proud of the team today. These two podiums the past two days will reassure the riders and encourage them to try more things in future stages.”