'Close the book and go for the next one' - From stage wins and the pink jersey to breakaways and crashes, inside XDS Astana's up and down Giro d'Italia

XDS Astana came into this Giro d'Italia with one goal, and one goal only; to win as many stages as possible. Not spending energy on supporting a general classification contender has been successful with two stage wins and even a stint in the maglia rosa.

In keeping with a reputation as being one of the most unpredictable of the three Grand Tours, the Giro seemed to provide a roll of success for the team, then it came crashing down on stage 11 when Davide Ballerini crashed just 46km into the 195km stage from Porcari to Chiavari.

"Unfortunately, Davide Ballerini abandons the race after his crash earlier in the stage. Thank you, Davide, for bringing us a great victory in Naples. Grazie," the team posted to its social media channels during the race.

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XDS Astana have not yet released a medical update, but the Italian was seen by race medical staff to treat injuries to his hand and knee, according to the team's director, Mario Manzoni.

At the finish in Chiavari, Cyclingnews spoke with Dario Cataldo, who retired from his own racing career at the end of 2024 before becoming a director at XDS Astana in 2026, who said the details of Ballerini's crash were still unclear, but that he had abandoned due to his injuries and the amount of climbing still left in the stage.

"We don't know the dynamic of the crash. We saw him out of the corner, and we still need to speak with him. We know he came back in the peloton but was not able to push with the leg; his knee and hand," he said.

"We will need to see the doctor. He would not have been able to do the climbs in the final. If it were an easier stage, maybe he could keep suffering and finish, but today it was not impossible."

But the team carried on with its ambitions for stage success.

Earlier that morning in Porcari, Cyclingnews spoke with Christian Scaroni, who decided not to expend energy during the previous day's stage 10 time trial so he could move further down the GC rankings and instead go for breakaways.

"I am not focussed about the GC. I am focused on the stage race, and I am focused today on trying to go for the stages," Scaroni said.

XDS Astana managed to put three riders in the decisive breakaway with Alberto Bettiol, Diego Ulissi, and then Scaroni bridged across. But more bad luck struck the team when Scaroni crashed along with several other riders with 41km remaining. He got back up and finished sixth on the day, but the accident ended his chances at a stage victory.

Bettiol had already been distanced from the move, while Ulissi salvaged the team's efforts, finishing third place, 11 seconds behind the winning breakaway of Jhonatan Narváez (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Enric Mas (Movistar).

"We came to this Giro with a team to go for breakaways. We knew that if there was a stage for a breakaway, it would be made for us. We were giving everything and playing all the cards for those days. Still, other teams want to do the same, and the race is open to many riders; we fight, we go for it, but nothing is sure," Cataldo told Cyclingnews.

"Of course, there are things that you cannot predict and that you don't expect, like the crashes of Ballerini and Scaroni. It was not even easy to catch the break, and the guys were spending a lot to be in the front. A few riders were very strong today. Narváez was crazy strong today. In the end, we are super happy with them, and it was a good performance, so we look forward to the other stages."

After a racing career of his own, Cataldo understands the ups and downs of bike racing, especially at the Giro d'Italia, where he won a stage in the 2019 edition. He said that he is proud of his team's performances so far; Thomas Silva won stage 2 into Veliko Tarnovo, where he took the magila rosa, and Ballerini won stage 6 into Naples.

"When you go with a team like this that is just for breakaways, it is pretty easy. Every day is a new day and a new race. When you go for the GC, you cannot have a bad day. It is much more difficult for teams that go for the GC because if for one day you lose time, it's over," Cataldo said.

"When you go for stages, you know that if you have one bad day, you just close the book and go for the next one. It will not be a problem for the team's morale, especially since we had a good start at this Giro d'Italia. Everything we have had is good, we have to be clear what we want, how to do it and just go for it."

Asked what he will say to his riders in the post-race debrief, he said, "Every day we have a debrief about this stage and then another for the next stage. For today, I would say to the riders that I'm happy with them, and that I saw that they were giving it 100%, we are super proud of them, to keep going like this, take some rest and go for the next stages."

As for Scaroni, he plans to get back into the breakaways, hunting opportunities for stage wins, as many as possible, before the race heads into Rome on May 31.

"No one expected us to have this really high performance, but we are strong guys and have a strong team. For me, it is not a surprise that we won two stages," Scaroni said.

"The Giro is still long, and there are many stages to come. We need to be focused every day, to try to win another stage. At the end of the Giro, we will count the victories."

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