Stage winner Dversnes contradicts the motorbike story: 'The only motorbike today was me'

Four riders against an entire peloton: how do you pull it off? Ask Fredrik Dversnes Lavik — the man who claimed the fifteenth stage of the Giro d'Italia in entirely unexpected and sensational fashion. The Norwegian from Uno-X stayed clear of the sprinters with his fellow escapees — a stunning debut for him and his team. But did the motorbikes play a role?

The question of how Dversnes and his three companions managed to stay ahead was doing the rounds in the peloton. "Good question, actually," he laughed in his flash interview. "Super good help from the other guys in the breakaway — the Italian from Bardiani and the Polti guys, they were really strong today. I knew I had some good opportunities, because I'm pretty good at going in breakaways, so this was my big shot."

The belief in a possible upset grew with every kilometre. "It was a hopeless plan at the start, but it grew the further we got," he said. "You always think about it on the way, but when we still had two minutes pretty late in the race, you start believing. But you have to think about what to do and what's important — not think about what can happen."

In the finale he had no idea where things stood. "I just had to keep looking behind me, but I couldn't see anyone coming," Dversnes told CyclingPro.net afterwards. "I was just focused on myself and my breakaway companions." He then sealed it in style in the sprint. "I know I have a decent sprint in a small group. When nobody made a move from behind, I chose my moment to go for it. Fortunately, it was enough."

The strong Norwegian seemed to sense victory coming — albeit with a hint of humour. "I have been joking this whole Giro that I would try to trick the peloton on one of these sprint stages, so I really wanted to prove that. I'm super glad to make it." With his win, he handed Uno-X Mobility a stage victory on their Giro d'Italia debut — and it was also his very first Grand Tour. "It's really a dream to win a stage in my first Grand Tour. Unbelievable."

The twisting Milan circuit helped the breakaway stay clear. "We knew it was going to be a fast day, with the wind and the flat roads. When we had two and a half minutes, we knew you'd have to ride very hard to catch us. If your breakaway companions are strong enough, it's quite an advantage to be riding ahead of the peloton."

Afterwards, a number of teams and riders voiced accusations of foul play. Elmar Reinders (Unibet Rose Rockets) and Tim Torn Teutenberg (Lidl-Trek) both pointed the finger at the race motorbikes. Dversnes Lavik, however, shut that down quickly and sharply. "There were actually four very strong motorbikes inside the breakaway."