With his confidence on the up after a superb lone attack in the finale of today’s eighth stage of the Giro d’Italia, Oscar Gatto has said that he will target other victories in the Giro d’Italia.
The Farnese Vini – Neri Sottoli rider kicked clear 1.5 kilometres from the line and opened an immediate gap over the sprinters’ teams. Race favourite Alberto Contador gave chase 200 metres later but while he drew gradually closer, was unable to prevent Gatto from taking the biggest win of his life.
“I hope that this success is the turning point of my career, and I can arrive to another level in my performances in races,” the 26 year old told VeloNation afterwards.
He’s already looking to where else he can try to shine. “In the next stages, I saw that for example, Castelfidardo is perfect for my characteristics,” he said. “I hope that there are other stages in which I can do well.”
Gatto is a fast finisher, but prefers the more complicated approaches to a finish line. Yesterday’s technical run-in suited him, and so too the uphill ramp that he used to get his gap before the flatter final kilometre. He said that he had a hunch the stage could be good for him.
“I thought about this race since yesterday, but I didn’t identify a place beforehand to do my attack,” he said. “In the end, I followed my instincts and I found the right time to go. In Italy, we speak about Carpe Diem, and this was the case today.”
His explosive jump quickly opened a solid lead and the sprinters behind didn’t have a chance to get him back. Contador’s surge was his biggest threat, and he admitted that he was worried as the Spaniard drew closer.
“The first time I looked, Contador was not so near to me,” he said. “The second time, he was, and I hoped that he didn’t arrive to my wheels as I was completely flat out.”
Both riders profited from the result. Contador gained time on his rivals, and scored an important psychological blow before today’s more crucial stage to Mount Etna. Gatto isn’t concerned with the overall classification, but in improving on past results such as a stage win in this year’s Giro della Provincia di Reggio Calabria and victory in last year’s GP Nobili, he has shown that he has moved to a new level and is ready to chase bigger targets in future.