Caruso and Pellizzari are celebrating as the best Italian riders, but what does Gee have to say about Carapaz and Del Toro?

Gee was still a dangerous outsider for the podium before Saturday, but it soon became clear that it was impossible. "Obviously, when you’re in fourth place, you want the podium," he said on his team's website. "But I had the fourth-best legs. Those guys were well above me today, so there was nothing I could do. I’m just happy to be here, in this position – especially when you consider the time lost at the start of the race."

On the Colle delle Finestre, the Canadian from Israel - Premier Tech, couldn't keep up with the accelerations of Richard Carapaz, Isaac Del Toro, and Simon Yates. He did encounter the first two on several occasions, as they were accelerating and slowing down. "I didn’t really have the energy to think about what Del Toro and Carapaz were doing. I just did my own ride. It would have been suicide for me to try and go with those guys. With the kind of kick they have and their ability to recover from it, I would have been gone really, really quick."

Just over a minute behind Gee, Caruso is in fifth place. That is extremely impressive for several reasons. The Italian from Bahrain Victorious will turn 38 in October and did not even start this Giro as lead rider. "I'm extremely satisfied," he told CyclingTime. "On the eve of the Giro, I never thought about the GC or fighting for the top 5. I'm going home very happy on Monday because it's a very good result considering my age and role. All of this gives me a lot of satisfaction."

Carapaz's acceleration on the first sections of the Finestre made the stage even more difficult than it was on paper. But the veteran, who finished second in the 2021 Giro d'Italia, knew what he had to do. "At the most difficult moment, on the Colle delle Finestre, I saw the words ‘don't give up’ on my bike, and I kept fighting."

Pellizzari, who is 16 years younger, can somewhat relate to his compatriot's situation: he also did not start as lead rider but ended up riding a fantastic Giro. "I paced myself well," he told Cycling Pro about the second-to-last stage. "They flew away as if the finish was already 1 kilometer from the foot of the Finestre. I knew they would slow down a bit and that I might be able to return. I managed to do that, and I was completely fine in the valley."

It's no secret that the young climber is friends with his peer, Del Toro. The Mexican rider lost the pink jersey in the final mountain stage and finished 3.56 minutes behind Yates in the GC. "I don't know exactly what happened, and I feel for Isaac, but I'm also happy for Yates. In 2018, he lost the Giro on the Finestre, so I think it's great that he won it here."

Of course, Primoz Roglic was the rider who had to deliver for Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe in this stage, but the Slovenian abandoned the race in the sixteenth stage. From that moment on, it was up to his teammate, who performed brilliantly and quickly rose in the GC. "It's been a great Giro, with ups and downs. But I've had fun," said Pellizzari. Will he return to win the Giro himself? "We're going to try." Clear words.