As it happened : XDS-Astana reign in Naples after cobbles, late corners, crashes and chaos in high-speed Giro d'Italia sprint stage 6

Buongiorno and welcome to the Cyclingnews live coverage of stage 6 of the Giro d'Italia.

Today is surely a day for the sprinters. The stage is only 142km long, flat and fast.

Though the finish in central Naples is on cobbled roads.

This is our stage preview.

2026 Giro d'Italia stage 6 preview - Short, flat route around Mount Vesuvius sets up for sprinters on pavé finale at Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples

As Jackie Tyson pointed out, today's stage passes historic landmarks worthy of a sightseeing trip, starting with Greek and Roman archaeological sites in Paestum.

The opening 30km of the 141km northerly route are flat as it follows the Mediterranean coastline, then a category 4 climb at Cava de' Tirreni offers a change of scenery on the 7.1km ascent, with a modest average gradient of 2.7%.

The remaining 100km are relatively flat, passing to the north of Mount Vesuvius and then moving west into the heart of Naples, with an abundance of urban twists and turns, as well as street furniture. Narrow lanes are replaced with wide, paved roads in the final 19km.

However the final kilometres, as the sprinters fight for position, will be interesting.

The final 3km bring the coastline back into view, with a straight path along one of the busiest seaports on the Mediterranean.

Once under the 1km-to-go kite, the finale is defined by a dash of more ancient history, with tarmac changing to stone slabs and a noticeable upward pitch of 4%.

Mid-way across the cobbles, there are two quick right-hand bends, leaving 400 metres to the finish at Piazza del Plebiscito.

This is the stage profile

This is the stage map.

This is the final part in the centre of Naples, which has concerned the teams due to the road surface.

Look at the U turn on the cobbles in the final km!

The road rises in the final metres before entering the aim square on big slabs of stone.

The stage marks a fifth consecutive year that the Giro has finished in Naples, though each finale has been quite different. This is one is very different.

Cross winds along the coast early in the stage could also be a problem, with a risk of rain showers during the day.

The riders are currently signing on in Paestum, near the Greek and Roman ruins.

We have a new race leader after the epic rain-soaked stage 5.

This is what happened during a testing day to Potenza, where Igor Arrieta (UAE) won the stage and Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain Victorious) took the maglia rosa.

Giro d'Italia: Igor Arrieta's rainy day raid delivers stage 5 victory for UAE Team Emirates-XRG

Last year the Giro finished in Napoli after a 227km ride from Potenza. It was a tough day out.

Kaden Groves won on a day that was defined by crashes and chaos.

Groves beat Milan Fretin (Cofidis) and Paul Magnier (Soudal-QuickStep), thanks to Alpecin-Deceuninck's organisation in a hectic sprint.

The peloton only caught Taco van der Hoorn (Intermarché-Wanty) and Enzo Paleni (Groupama-FDJ) with 2.5km to go.

A late attack from Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) threatened an upset but he was swept up but Groves emerged to win.

A mass crash with 70km to go forced the race to stop, the GC times for the stage were neutralised, meaning all riders were given the same time on the line regardless of gaps, with no bonus seconds or sprint points awarded.

This was our 2025 stage report.

Giro d'Italia: Kaden Groves wins chaotic stage 6 following race neutralisation

The Picnic riders sign on.

Jasper Stuyven has warned of the potentially huge risks in the cobbled finale if rain closes in on the riders as it did on Wednesday.

The Belgian is one of the CPA representatives for the Giro and spoke to Cyclingnews' James Moultrie.

"I don't want to say that it really looks super dangerous already. I mean, if it rains, of course, it's not going to be funny, but I think Napoli is always known as a tricky run into the city," Stuyven told Cyclingnews.

"The roads themselves are not in the best condition. But it's hard to say. Nowadays, we can have a straightforward finish line and a big crash, or we can have a very technical final and bad crashes.

"I think it's more how [organisers] deal with narrowings and road furniture, and then part of it is also on the riders themselves."

'If it rains, it's not going to be funny' – Jasper Stuyven warns of potential danger of cobbled sprint finish in Naples at Giro d'Italia

This is how to watch the Giro, especially if you are away from home and want to use a VPN to stream your accounts.

How to watch Giro d'Italia 2026 – Free live streams, TV channels, Schedule, Stage 6

Visma ride to the sign-on.

Netcompany are ready for rain on the roads of Naples.

The riders are signing on under sun and showers.

The riders are lined-up for the roll out.

The riders face a 8.4km neutralised sector before the flag drops.

They're off. The riders roll out of Paestum. Here we go!

Riders roll along, with rain capes in their pockets.

The views across Paestum are incredible but the riders are focused on the stage.

Felix Engelhardt (Jayco AlUla) is the only DNS today.

Some riders put on their capes as they feel some drops of rain.

The pace is slow but the tension is high.

2km to the official stage start.

142km to go

Here we go! The race directors waves his pink flag and the stage is underway. Andiamo!

The riders are happy to roll along under a moment of sun.

Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto) makes a cheeky faux attack but is joking with his fellow riders.

The riders are near the Mediterranean and it is windy today with gusts up to 40km/h.

The riders have some shelter from the pine trees but there will be exposed sectors.

Crash! Milan seems to have been involved.

Milan needs a bike change and calmly takes his bidons with him. Sobrero is with him and takes a new bike but crashing on his birthday is not a great way to celebrate.

It seems it as just a touch of wheels, with some Uno-X riders also going down.

Other riders taking a natural break perhaps sparked the tumble.

130km to go

Still no attacks. It's all quiet on the western front of the Giro today.

We spoke too soon. We have an attack.

Edward Planckaert and Luca Vergallito (Alpecin-Premier Tech) have attacked together.

They have lost sprinter Kaden Groves due to a crash and so are trying to make sense of their Giro.

The two have a gap of 1:00 but the peloton is looking twitchy and so there could be counter-attacks.

120km to go

The peloton is sread across the road but moving fast.

This was the view at the start. Not bad at all.

Here is Afonso Eulálio in the pink jersey.

The wind is blowing from the sea and so the peloton is riding together, riding safely.

The riders are happy to ride in the sun so far today. But the effects of racing in heavy rain yesterday are still bing felt and even feared.

For Jonas Vingegaard staying safe and staying healthy will be key before he's able to impose himself in the high mountains.

"Everybody is feeling good. We will have to see what the consequences are after a day like this," DS Marc Reef said.

"You see that also more often in the past, that a few days after, there is already something going on in the bunch with what I see and I hear, that riders are not healthy. A day like this is for sure not helping in that sense, but we do what we can, and hopefully everybody stays healthy."

Read James Moultrie's full story here.

'There is already something going on in the bunch' - Threat of illness after cold, wet Giro d'Italia stage 5 more concerning than 6:22 deficit for Visma-Lease a Bike

Manuele Tarozzi and Martin Marcellusi (Bardiani CSF 7 Saber), plus Mattia Bais (Team Polti VisitMalta) have attacked to try to join the two Alpecin riders.

This is more like it.

The peloton has let them go and is at 1:00.

Jonathan Milan changes back to his No. 1 race bike after an earlier crash and swap.

After the beaches of Paestum, the rider climb into the hills above Salerno, catching a glance of the Amafli coast.

They avoid the twisting but spectacular coast road this time and will ride behind the Vesuvio volcano before entering Naples.

The Giro si far more than a bike race, it is a journey into the beauty of Italy.

It's time for the Cava de' Tirreni Cat 4 KOM, the only climb of the stage.

Mattia Bais (Team Polti VisitMalta) kicks away to win the KOM and take the points and prizes but waits for the other 4 riders in the break.

100km to go

The peloton is only 35 seconds behind the attackers but the road twisting and wet.

Crash! Nico Denz (Red Bull) goes down in a squeeze and chicane.

Denz seemed to slip out on the damp road.

The race doctors quickly reach Denz and seem to want to treat him before he gets going.

A reply shows that Denz slipped out alone. The maglia rosa was just ahead of and so fortunate to avoid the crash.

The crash has raised the tension in the peloton and so they close-in on the attack but then slow again.

The riders have ride through the nasty smoke of a pink flare. That's a lack of respect for the riders.

85km to go

The break leads by just 30 seconds, with the Unibet, Lidl and Soudal riders leading the chase.

Everything is set for a sprint finish.

80km to go

Nico Denz is back in the peloton. He seemed to hit his head but is back riding.

Sadly the roads are wet now as the race is caught in a shower.

Suddnely riders have to dodge puddles and put on their capes and gilet.

The average speed for the first hour is a steady 41.455 km/h.

70km to go

This stage is a slow burn as the peloton keeps the attackers at 40 seconds and waits for the sprint finish.

Riders are fatigued and cautious after yesterday's stage in the rain and saving their energy for Friday's 244Km 7th stage up to Blockhaus.

The Giro is always a tactical game of three weeks with contrasting and combined goals.

As always. the crowds are huge in the Naples area. Everyone loves to stop work to stand on the roadside to watch the rice go by. We can perhaps call it Giromaxxing.

This is the break of the day.

Britain's Jake Stewart and his NSN team should be in the action in today's sprint.

Stewart told Alasdair Fotheringham that at the Giro d'Italia, the squad's main focus on the flatter stages is on getting fastmen Corbin Strong and Ethan Vernon into a position where they can go for the victory.

'Crashing at 75kph, you're never going to walk away unscathed' – Jake Stewart and NSN's Giro d'Italia sprint dreams not derailed by injury setbacks

60km to go

The break leads by 45 seconds as the peloton keeps them close and the kilometres count down slowly.

Fortunately the rain has passed and the roads are dry.

UAE have suffered numerous crashes in this year's Giro, with Geraint Thomas and Luke Rowe suggesting the choice to use time trial tyres as one reason.

However the UAE team dismissed that idea when Cyclingnews contacted the team.

This is the story.

'We don't feel it was a tyre issue' – UAE Team Emirates dismiss Luke Rowe and Geraint Thomas comments on use of TT tyres in wet Giro d'Italia stages

Sadly there some young guys think it is cool to try to reach out, kick and touch the riders.

Hopefully the local police can identify them and take action.

Cycling has always been a celebration of life and sport. Real cycling fans are not hooligans or idiots like those we just saw.

This is the terrible behaviour we were talking about. This is not cycling.

40km to go

The riders have switched onto the main highway which takes them into central Naples.

The attackers are just 23 second ahead.

The brave attqackers are: Edward Planckaert and Luca Vergallito (Alpecin-Premier Tech), Manuele Tarozzi and Martin Marcellusi (Bardiani CSF 7 Saber), Mattia Bais (Team Polti VisitMalta)

Will the peloton let them stay away until the Red Bull KM sprint in 125km. They arguably deserve to take the cash prizes.

It's time to talk about today's finish and expected sprint.

The stage ends in Naples for a fifth consecutive time but this year's finish is very different.

It is in the stunning Piazza del Plebiscito but on cobbles and stone slabs made from the Vesuvio lava.

Roads in Naples are often covered in oil spills and polished smooth by cars.

The route takes the riders into the centre of Naples and then along the seafront until 650m to go.

There will be a sprint to that point because then positioning will be everything.

A key left-hand corner comes at 650 metres to go, and riders then enter a section of cobbles that runs all the way to the line.

It includes a U-turn with 300 metres to go on the smooth cobbles and then a rising sprint to the finish at the Piazza del Plebiscito.

It could be a spectacular finish but also a dangerous finish.

Lets hope everything goes well and nobody crashes.

Meanwhile the attackers have been caught and its gruppo compatto in the peloton.

30km to go

The riders are back on narrow city roads for a moment and so the peloton eases.

The Red Bull KM is in 5km with 6-4-2 second on the line. Will anyone got for it?

At the moment Vingegaard and Visma are at the back of the peloton, following their new strategy of avoiding crashes by riding united at the back.

It comes with risks but also has its advantages.

Filippo Magli (Bardiani) wins the Red Bull KM to secure some cash for his team. Ben O'Connor also tried to go for the time bonuses but faded before the line.

Attack! Alec Segaert surges away, using his TT skills to open a gap.

Segaert won the GP de Denain and James Moultrie spoke to him during the Classics for Cyclingnews.

A dark horse for the podium at Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix? – Cycling's new late attacker is making his presence impossible to ignore

Segaert was soon pulled back or rather, ordered to go back to the bunch by his team car. He is needed to protect the maglia rosa.

20km to go

The peloton is on the highway to central Naples now, so the speed rises more and more and teams fight for position.

Unibet are studying the finish in detail. All the other teams will have done the same.

There is a slight risk of rain for the finish.

As Sergeant Phil Esterhaus of Hill Street Blues alway said: Let's be careful out there...

15km to go

The peloton is spread across the road but moving fast.

We can see Soudal on the left of the road, Lild next to them and Tudor there too.

Baghrain are on the right, protecting Afonso Eulálio ands his pink jersey.

It seems Jasper Stuyven is Paul Magnier's leadout man. That seems the right choice with the cobbled finish.

10km to go

The highway ends with 7km to go and then we can expect the lead out trains to hit out.

There is no sign of Visma. They are sticking with their 'Steve Cummings strategy' of riding at the back of the peloton to avoid any crashes.

From -5km to go, any riders who crash or slowed by a problem will be given ghe same time as they group they were in. That is why Visma has opted to ride at the back.

Paul Magnier is down the back on the right, with EF riders on his wheel. They will soon have to move up.

Here we go! The riders dive off the elevated highway.

It's sprint time.

5km to go

Fortunately the roads are wide here.

And just like that... Soudal and Magnier are up front.

Unibet are on the front to dive through a roundabout.

Unibet have 5 riders on the front but Groenewegen is hiding on other wheels.

3km to go

Straight roads until 700m to go. Fortunately it is not raining.

Unibet stay on the front but others are letting them do the work.

We spoke too soon, there are drops of rain falling at the finish.

There is a huge fight for position.

2km to go

Decathlon are up front with Unibet.

Magnier is surfing the wheels.

Unibet are going all in for Groenewegen.

Last km!

Unibet lead onto the cobbles.

Crash!!!!!

On the very last corner, the U turn, riders go down like skittles.

Davide Ballerini avoided the crash and stayed away to win!

It looked like Jasper Stuyven was second and Magnier third as they tried to chase Ballerini.

Unibet were on the front but slipped out together.

The rain is pouring down now. The crash could have been much worse.

XDS Astana are rightly celebrating a big win.

Ballerini was right behind the Unibet riders but stayed calm and stayed up as they fell.

What chaos, what a finish and what a win for Ballerini.

He's overjoyed to win.

This is the chaos of the sprint.

Ballerini couldn't beleive it but he rode a perfect finish and stayed up as others tumbled.

Dylan Groenewegen was disappointed and bleeding after his crash but proud of how Unibet dominated the lead out into Naples.

"I’m proud of how the guys rode today. They did an incredible job again and we showed that we have the strongest lead-out in this race. Everything was lining up well," he said.

“Unfortunately, we had some bad luck in the final corner and that cost us our chance to really sprint for the win. That’s frustrating.

“But we have to keep looking ahead now. We came to this Giro to fight for a stage win and that goal hasn’t changed. Even if we have to keep going all the way to Rome, we’ll keep chasing it."

Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain) finished safely in the peloton and so kept the maglia rosa before Friday's might Blockhaus stage.

This shots shows the gaps the crash caused.

To understand what happened during the stage and to see more race shots, check out our full stage report.

Giro d'Italia: Davide Ballerini avoids mass crash, speeds to stage 6 victory in Naples

This was Jasper Stuyven's reaction beyond the finish. He was so close to victory. Paul Magnier was third. He had to unclip to avoid going down behind the Unibet riders. He then got going and passed a haul of riders to finish third.

He was disappointed but at least scored more points to the points jersey competition.

There will obviously be a big, big Italian polemica about the design of the stage finish, the risk of racing on the roads of central Naples ans how these things are all decided and by whom.

Only XDS-Astana will be happy tonight. Ballerini was emotional after his unexpected win.

"Today, the sprinter was Matteo Malucelli and I was trying to do the maximum for him," Ballerini said.

"When we arrived in the last corner, I saw that the first two guys had a crash. I just exited from the corner and I heard in the radio 'Go, go, go – to the finish. There is a gap.' I just started and then I was hoping the line would come really fast. I made it and I'm really happy."

Ballerini has often worked for others and gone close to big victories, now he has a Giro stage.

"Finally!" he said.

"It's really important because we work a lot for this and in cycling there is always some problem. Especially when you don't expect a win, it comes."

Meanwhile Jonathan Milan was not happy about the finish. He was slowed by the crash and missed out on a sprint opportunity once again.

"Luckily, I didn’t crash, I was able to stay on my bike,but they crashed in front of me,” Milan told TNT Sports.

"I mean, it's not their fault. 
We knew that he could be super slippery if it rained on these kinds of cobbles. I really don't get why we have to try to find these complicated finishes. I really don’t get it."

Thursday’s visit to Naples for stage 6 marked the fifth consecutive edition in which Naples has hosted a finish.

He added.

“It could be safe like some years ago when we could go just straight, but no, with two drops of water we get a huge mess. I’m just a bit disappointed because I was in a good position, and I’m in good shape and feeling good." he said.

We'll have more reaction and news later in the day from Alasdair Fotheringham and James Moultrie in Naples, plus from our global CN team.

It was a drammatic finish but Friday promises to be even bigger. Stage 7 is the longest stage of the race at 244Km and climbs the might Blouckhaus in the Abruzzo mountains.

Read Alasdair Fotheringham's special feature to understand the climb and what could happen.

Jonas Vingegaard stayed safe at the back of the peloton today. Tomorrow we expect to see him up front and even on the attack.

What is the Blockhaus? And why does it matter so much in this year’s Giro d’Italia?

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