Giro d'Italia, Juan Ayuso sheds light on his condition

“Obviously I would have preferred not to end up on the ground. I needed three patches, I had a lot of pain” admitted Juan Ayuso at a press conference on the rest day of the Giro d’Italia. “From there on it was a continuous stress, I hoped not to puncture and fortunately it went well”.

The UAE Team Emirates rider, now second in the standings of the Corsa Rosa, sustained an injury to his right knee on the ninth stage between Gubbio and Siena. The Spaniard needed four stitches after falling in one of the dirt sections.

“The rest day helped me – Ayuso added -: this morning the first 15-20 minutes of training were not easy, I was in pain and I was worried, but then it got better. I think tomorrow the situation will be even better”.

In the dirt stage, Ayuso was involved in a crash in the frantic final stages of the gar. However, his reaction was immediate: he got up, rejoined the main group and crossed the finish line with the best. This allowed him to climb up to second in the general classification, behind only his teammate Isaac Del Toro, the new leader and the first Mexican to wear the pink jersey.