Caruso (6th) suddenly finds himself ahead of leader Tiberi (7th), who has crashed, and voices his concern: "You have to be brave"

No one had really taken Caruso into account for the Giro. The number two in the 2021 Giro had a difficult 2024 due to crashes and injuries after finishing fourth in the Giro the year before. After a winter without problems, he suddenly showed a glimpse of his best form again in April in the Tour of the Alps, finishing sixth after Tiberi had to abandon the race due to illness. It was clear that Caruso was in good shape going into the Giro.

However, sixth place in the GC on the last rest day will be more than the Italian hoped for. Tiberi moved up one place because the team leader crashed on Saturday and lost several minutes. Caruso avoided the crash and was allowed to stay with the first group by Bahrain Victorious, as the team now has two cards to play with in sixth and seventh place. That is necessary because, with the consequences of his crash, can Tiberi still compete for the podium? On Sunday, in stage 15, everything seemed to be fine.

Read below the photo for an interview with Caruso.

"Antonio came into this Giro with big ambitions but had some health problems in the run-up. I told him: don't be afraid, the last week will be the hardest. Your condition will only get better. He has proven that. Antonio already had the legs to follow Richard Carapaz last Wednesday, but he lacked some focus. He has to switch gears, seize opportunities, and enjoy himself more. Don't overthink, just feel it."

"After Wednesday, I told him that if you have the legs, you must be brave and try it even if it doesn't work out. You don't want to stand in Rome with a feeling of regret; you have to be sure that you gave it your all in the hope of achieving your goal. That mentality is important, and I always aim for the best. And I think and hope that the best is yet to come for Antonio; we're seeing signs of that.“

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"Antonio is a normal guy who is very friendly and likes to joke around with everyone. He's a good person, and that's important to me. I like to help people with a good heart, and I believe that with his mentality, he can go far."

"Yes, good point. Last year was a bad year for me, with a lot of crashes and injuries. I lost some of the fun in racing, but last winter, I started again with the same grit as always, and all that work is paying off now. Maybe you're right, and it's not time to stop yet, but I should keep going for another year."

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On Monday, the third and last rest day, Tiberi was confronted with Caruso's words. And he couldn't help but agree. "Damiano does push me to be brave, to push myself to the limit. The crash on Saturday didn't help, of course; that was my hardest day of the Giro. But in the end, it was a good day, with no time lost. There are still a lot of tough stages to come in the third week, where Damiano and I can try something."

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg | email: [email protected])