On paper, stage 9 of the Giro d’Italia seemed perfectly suited to Kaden Groves with a tricky final that included repetitive climbs after almost 200 kilometres of racing.
The sprinter has shown that he is on form and can outclimb the other fastmen in the Giro, and so he used his Alpecin-Deceuninck team to control the gap to the breakaway on the second-longest stage of the three-week race. By the time the peloton hit the Intermediate sprint after 158km of racing, the whole eight-man squad was in line at the front. The plan was clear, control the gap, reel the early breakaway in, use the bumpy last third of the stage to dispatch rivals and then, do a lead-out for Groves.
