Ackermann fumes after Giro sprint: 'I'm just glad I got out of it in one piece'

The first two stages of the Giro d'Italia brought nothing but chaos and bad luck for many riders. Major crashes left a trail of fractures, abandonments and battered survivors. Stage three seemed to pass off relatively cleanly — but not everyone came through the finale feeling good about it. Pascal Ackermann had some choice words about the state of affairs in the sprint.

The German has had a solid Giro so far. He finished seventh in both stage one and stage two, narrowly avoiding the major crash in the opening stage that caught out Erlend Blikra, Kaden Groves and Dylan Groenewegen, among others.

Ackermann has good history at this race. Back in 2019, while still at BORA-hansgrohe, he won two stages and claimed the purple points jersey. As a UAE Team Emirates rider four years later, he added another stage win, beating Jonathan Milan and Mark Cavendish in impressive fashion.

Since his move to Jayco AlUla, though, the sprinter has yet to win a race. At the Bredene Koksijde Classic earlier this spring he came close, finishing second behind Groenewegen, and in Italy he is searching for that elusive first win of the season.

It is proving far from straightforward — not only because of the fierce competition, but because of the pushing and shoving in the bunch. "Completely nuts," he told Eurosport after stage three.

The finish in Sofia was long and straight, but it still descended into a scramble. And Ackermann, for one, has had enough of it. "What can you say — nothing happens all day, and in the end it's just a fight. You have to gamble a lot, and I went all in on Magnier's wheel, which would have been the right call in the end. Then the Estonian" — Madis Mihkels — "drove straight into me. They're all nuts, and I'm just glad I got out of it in one piece."

Strong words from Ackermann. After two sprint opportunities in the opening three days, the riders will get another chance on Tuesday — though the stage could equally go to a breakaway. Four purely flat stages still remain in this Giro, with the first proper sprint finish coming in stage six to Naples on Thursday. The German will certainly be in the mix again — though perhaps with rather less enthusiasm than before.