Paul Magnier of Soudal Quick-Step secured his third stage victory in this year's Giro d'Italia, winning the bunch sprint on stage 18 in Pieve di Soligo. The 22-year-old was expertly guided by teammate Jasper Stuyven through the final high-speed turns and powered to the line after 171km of racing.
Magnier finished ahead of Italian sprinters Edoardo Zambanini (Bahrain Victorious) in second and Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) in third on the undulating stage from Fai della Paganella. The victory, following his wins on stages one and three, puts Magnier at the top of the points classification.
Overall leader Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease A Bike) attacked on the day's short sharp final climb inside the final 10km but then settled in the main bunch to preserve his advantage. The Dane leads Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM) by 4 minutes 3 seconds with three stages remaining.
The stage came alive after a four-man break was caught with around 25km to go. The 1.1km Il Muro di Ca' del Poggio ramp, with gradients of 19%, provided a sharp sting in the tail, briefly suggesting Vingegaard might go for the stage win. However, it was a day for the sprinters, and Soudal Quick-Step executed perfectly as Stuyven led Magnier into the final tricky corner.
“I had a lot of confidence this morning,” said Magnier. “My teammates made it into a sprint and I’m so happy to win. Jasper made an amazing lead-out.”
