«Filippo defeated in the Giro? In monster cycling he is not a robot »-Corriere.it

The motion of affections. Marco Ganna is on arrival, he has time to say goodbye to his son before Filippo is swallowed up by the post-stage routine. The time trial is lost, the hopes of biting the Giro are not.

Marco, what went wrong in Ortona?

«Filippo went well, it’s the other who went faster. I don’t understand how he was able to gain 12” in 10 km, on the terrain that is most favorable to him. Then, uphill towards the finish, he accused only 7 ”. But the analyzes will have been done with Ineos ».

Did you talk to him?

«Sure, it gnawed at him but his did. The wattages were there, the speed too. Evenepoel is monstrous but the Giro is long, the games are still open».

Are you expecting a coup like Camigliatello Silano?

“I expect everything from my son. He has prepared well, his values ​​are among the best he’s ever done, even in the tests at home, where I ride him on a Vespa, he performed well. All in all, he’s doing great. He will come out.’

From your point of view, at what point is the transition from pistard to classic man?

«Filippo was second in Sanremo, sixth in Roubaix. He has improved a lot. The point is that in modern cycling you must always be at 110% to have a chance. 100% is no longer enough.”

At Sanremo, on the Poggio, he was criticized for not having gone after Van der Poel.

«There he believed that Pogacar was closing down, which has not moved. But damn it, those four (Van der Poel, Ganna, Van Aert and Pogacar, mentioned in order of arrival, ed) they climbed the Poggio in record time and against the wind. And in Roubaix Filippo may have lost the moment but recovered 20” and went through the woods at super speed. It’s a cycling of phenomena, my son is not a robot. You can’t think that he’s always a superhero ».

Criticisms are also a sign of affection though.

«Yes, he is a grouch but he knows it, the affection reaches him. Even yesterday morning, when he left Teramo without the pink jersey, he was the most applauded. It’s that in Italy after Nibali we lack a man capable of winning the grand tours, I believe that if Filippo had been born in Belgium (which hasn’t had a king of the Giro since ’78) or in France (without food since ’89) he would criticized much less.

It’s a cycling that has already revolutionized compared to the era of Nibali, who even retired only last year.

“Pure climbers no longer exist. Filippo at the end of the Giro will weigh 84 kilos: once upon a time a rider like him formed a small group 10 km from the head of the race».

Is Philip’s perennial dissatisfaction character?

“That’s how he is, it’s his mentality. As a former athlete, I taught him not to rest on his laurels and to respect his opponents. If you want to get there, you need elbow grease. But when you have given everything and someone else has done better than you, you can be satisfied».

Do you meditate revenge?

«He’ll start like crazy in the Cesena time trial. And at the World Cup he wants to take back the rainbow jersey in the time trial».

Track, time trial, road: isn’t that too much?

«Filippo will make his choices after Paris 2024, in agreement with Ineos: I will not put any pressure on him. His problem is that he started winning when he was young: the first track World Championship in 2016, when he was not yet 20 years old. Few remember it.”

Is this the life you dreamed of for Filippo as a child?

“Being in the office wouldn’t do for him. He does the sport he loves, in the open air, it’s the best. He’s happy but, being a bear like me, he doesn’t show it.’

Is it true that you turned down a million dollar contract as captain with Trek?

«Hahaha» (laughter suggests that yes, that’s right, ed).