The Bais brothers’ combativity opens the Tour of the Alps

Trentino is home for the Bais brothers — and they made their mark on the opening day of the Tour of the Alps. Davide was part of a 110-kilometre breakaway alongside Pickering (Bahrain) and August (Ineos) passing first through the intermediate sprint in Andalo and earning the day’s best climber prize in the Italian Cup of the Regions, overseen by the Professional Cycling League. After the leaders were caught on the Passo del Durone, the peloton was reduced to just over 20 riders. At the base of the final climb, Mattia attacked and was reeled in with 2 km to go — but he now leads the combativity classification of both the Tour of the Alps and the Italian Cup of the Regions. Team Polti VisitMalta’s strong start was rounded out by Davide Piganzoli, who stayed with the best and sprinted to 12th place on the uphill finish won by Ciccone (Lidl Trek).

Davide Bais: “As always, a tough route — even more challenging and exciting with two strong breakaway companions and an amazing crowd along the roads. We care a lot about honouring our home race, we’ll try again for sure.”

Mattia Bais: “I knew it was going to be a hard move to pull off, I hoped the others would hesitate behind me. With a headwind and alone I couldn’t make it, but I’m happy to feel good legs again after the training block on Mount Teide.”

Sports Director Stefano Zanatta: “We had a great start, sticking to our plan to be aggressive early on and active in the finale. In the bunch Alex Martín, Andrea Pietrobon, Fran Muñoz and Samuele Zoccarato worked flawlessly for their teammates. It’s a pity no one followed Mattia’s move, but Piganzoli is right up there and we’re ready for tomorrow’s longest stage.”