Stitches Ayuso's knee removed on rest day, but he admits: "The injury still hurts a lot"

Ayuso has performed relatively well over the past week. The Spaniard crashed in the gravel stage on day nine and suffered a nasty wound to his knee. “My stitches were removed on the rest day, but the injury is still quite painful. However, it is improving. There is no longer any risk of the wound becoming infected," he said, according to AS.

"The great thing is that after the Giro, I won't have to get on my bike for a few weeks, and I don't think it will bother me anymore," said the Spaniard, who has no intention of attacking his teammate Del Toro. "Of course, the fact that we have two cards to play works in our favor. The others must attack us, and we don't have to create difficult situations. It's our job to control the race and let our opponents waste energy."

Del Toro spoke on the rest day via an online press conference with, among others, IDLProCycling.com. "At the beginning of this year, we put together a calendar, the goal of which was already to be at our best in the major races. That also included a big training block leading up to the Giro," said the Mexican. "I didn't post much about it on social media, but the team kept me informed."

"Together, we have ensured that we are at our best for this race, including me," the Giro d'Italia leader added. "I feel pretty good and am probably on top form. I'm not necessarily confident about the third week, but I have to believe I can do it."