Pedersen praises 'great champion' at Lidl-Trek after impressive performance against van Aert: "You always have to fear Wout"

"This is my best victory so far and the first leader's jersey I've worn in a grand tour, so that's great," Pedersen said with a big smile after the finish. "To win the stage and take the pink jersey feels incredible after all the work the team has put in. It's fantastic that the team has worked so hard. As you saw, this was exactly the plan: make it tough on the climbs, thin out the group, and then sprint for it."

There were special words of appreciation for Giulio Ciccone, who pushed hard on the final climb to help Pedersen and thin out the peloton. The Italian rider aims for a place in the Giro GC but still puts in a significant effort for Pedersen. “Giulio is in excellent form, and what he showed today was pure class. The fact that he helped me like that shows he is a great champion. I think he has a good chance of doing well in the GC.  

Pedersen pushed - thanks to the effort of his team - his wheel over the finish line just ahead of Wout van Aert. The Belgian from Visma | Lease a Bike was obviously a dangerous opponent going into the race. "You always have to fear Wout because he is an excellent rider. You can never be sure you'll win when he's involved, so you have to respect him and be a little afraid of him. Fortunately, I had the legs to finish it for the team today."

On day 2, there is a time trial on the program, a chance for Pedersen to defend his leader's jersey. "I'm going give it my all tomorrow. It will be tough, but my legs feel good, so I will go full throttle to honor the pink jersey,” he told RAI Sport. He added: "Since Paris-Nice, I've been on the time trial bike twice because I was more focused on the classics. But it's a short time trial, so I should be fine."