Giro 2023: Thibaut Pinot pays tribute to Filippo Zana

Giro 2023, Pinot open-hearted after second place: “For me it was so important to come back and play a stage”

After his second-place finish in the 18th stage of the Giro d’Italia, transalpine cyclist Thibaut Pinot spoke bluntly about the battle with Filippo Zana and the chase for the pink jersey.

“This time the second place is less frustrating. I lost in the sprint, maybe I made a mistake by starting a little too far back, but with hindsight you can always change something. I have fewer regrets because I know I gave everything despite not being at 100 percent. I have to congratulate Zana who got a well-deserved victory,” admitted the Groupama-FDJ rider to the microphones of “Cyclingpro.net.”

“I can’t get my hopes up, I’m too close in the standings to hope to go away. I will try to follow the big guys, so now I have to recover for good to try to get another good result in the next stage. I went through some very difficult moments, but today I had some positive answers. I spent a lot of time doing physiotherapy and playing a stage for me was important,” added Thibaut Pinot.