How Tadej Pogačar could still be beaten at the Giro d'Italia

Tadej Pogačar has a convincing lead in the Giro d’Italia as the race pauses for the first rest day. With nine stages completed he's already won three stages and could easily have bagged five. Imperious on every terrain, he's even turned his hand to providing a devastatingly strong lead-out for his UAE team's sprinter, Juan Sebastián Molano. He's racing for fun and for victory. So, we ask, can anything stop him from cantering away with the maglia rosa as the race nears its Roman finale?

In order to answer that question, we speak to the directors on the two teams that have pressed Pogačar hardest over the Giro's opening nine days. We hear first from Bora-Hansgrohe DS John Wakefield, who's full of praise for Bora leader Dani Martínez, and tells us "if the opportunity presents, we'll definitely go for it".

The Ineos Grenadiers have signalled their determination to be aggressive since the opening day, when their Ecuadorian champion Jhonatan Narváez outsprinted Pogačar to become this Giro's first leader. After Narváez went oh so close to a second win in Naples, we spoke to Ineos team manager Steve Cummings, who explains why his team have been "excellent" since the race started and why cycling's history suggests that there's still a chance of Ineos leader Geraint Thomas taking the title.

After Lewis Askey last time out, it's the turn of Harrison Wood to update us on his Giro progress. The Cofidis rider reflects on the stage victory taken by teammate Benjamin Thomas, the awful state of the Neapolitan roads, and how he's quickly learning how to save his personal "bullets" for exactly the right moment to fire them.

We also reflect on the decision to select Richard Virenque as a torchbearer for the Olympic flame, which has arrived on French soil and is now being zig-zagging its way northwards from Marseille to Paris. A doper who consistently lied about his actions until the evidence of his cheating was overwhelming, does Virenque really embody the values of the Olympic Games?

Last time out in our regular "How to Make Cycling Better" feature, Soudal QuickStep sprinter Luke Lamperti suggested getting rid of time trials in stage races. Now we hear from his former team boss at the Trinity Racing team, Pete Kennaugh, who explains why he'd do away with "cognitive gains".

This podcast is brought to you with the support of our sponsor, Saddle Skedaddle. For details on how to save £100 on all of Skedaddle's Italian holidays during the Giro d'Italia, go to www.skedaddle.com/radiocycling

Music provided by HearWeGo 

Marion - High Hopes

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices