It was a day of mixed emotions for Rafal Majka in the Giro d'Italia. On one hand, he lost time to Rigoberto Uran, Nairo Quintana and Fabio Aru, on the other he gained valuable seconds on Cadel Evans, Wilco Kelderman and Domenico Pozzovivo on a day when he set his own tempo to limit his losses on the Montecampione climb.

Another grueling mountain stage was on the menu for the Giro d’Italia peloton today. A 205 kilometer flat run before taking on the 20 kilometer long uphill finish in Plan di Montecampione was the recipe for this tasty treat for the climbers and not least the spectators.

A big group consisting of Maxime Bouet (AG2R La Mondiale), Daniele Ratto (Cannondale), Johan Le Bon (Fdr.fr), Andre Fernando Cardoso (Garmin Sharp), Damiano Cunego (Lampre Merida), Adam Hansen (Lotto Belisol), Simon Geschke (Giant Shimano), Luca Paolini (Katusha) and Fabio Felline (Trek Factory Racing) floated away from the peloton from the get-go and dominated the stage.

As soon as the breakaway entered the uphill finish, Adam Hansen launched an attack and quickly worked up a lead with Cardoso, Torres and Felline. 2 minutes down, Arredondo was the first attack from the peloton and Zardini (Bardiani) soon bridged the gap while Omega-Pharma Quick Step kept a steady pace in the group of favorites.

A little less than halfway up the climb, Tinkoff-Saxo’s Rafal Majka was the only rider with a teammate to support him and Michael Rogers set a high pace in the group of favorites. Up the road, Philip Deignan (Sky) was on his own as every other escapee cracked on the steep slopes and were reeled back in.

A sudden move by the pink jersey, Rigoberto Uran shocked his rivals but they brought him back instantly. Pierre Rolland (Europcar) took advantage of the favorites’ standstill and countered a severe attack and bridged the gap to Deignan. Behind, Fabio Aru (Astana) suddenly jumped away with Uran on his wheel at first but before long, Aru was in the front of the race alone.

Aru maintained the high pace and soloed his way to victory while the favorites were spread all over the mountain. Tinkoff-Saxo’s Rafal Majka finished 6th on the stage and once again gained time on Cadel Evans (BMC):

“The boys did a solid job and put Rafa in a favorable position at the foot of the climb. From there, Michael (Rogers) delivered a perfect job taking the reigns of the pack while Rafa was protected. As the bombardment of attacks started, it was practically all about finding your own pace and Rafal didn’t panic but just followed his own rhythm and thereby distanced Evans. Aru took a stunning win and no one was able to control him today. Being in third position is a good way to enter the final week of the Giro. We’ll enjoy the rest day tomorrow and then saddle up for the marathon mountain stage on Tuesday where things could get settled,” said DS, Lars Michaelsen.

Rigoberto Uran (Omega-Pharma Quick Step) still leads overall while Cadel Evans (BMC) hung on to second place.