Alessandro Covi (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) claimed victory on stage 1 of the Giro d'Abruzzo, his first for three years since stage 20 of the 2022 Giro d'Italia, getting the four-day Italian stage race off to a perfect start in a grinding uphill sprint to Crecchio.
UAE Team Emirates-XRG continued to show their incredible team depth, with Covi being their 12th different winner so far in 2025 across the team's impressive 28 wins already.
The Italian was led into the finish by teammates Rune Herregodts and Ivo Oliveira, who kept the pace high enough before he hit out for the line and powered away from compatriots Filippo Fiorelli (VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè) in second and Alessandro Fancellu (JCL Team UKYO) who took third.
Covi will take the blue and green leader's jersey heading into the second stage, where he'll try to defend it on the tough roads from Tocco da Casauria to Penne, which features three categorised climbs.
"It's super nice, as always when you win. It's difficult because it's after three years but we are professional, we work for this victory every day of the week," Covi said.
"Obviously I had in the program this race and I see this finale which was a good opportunity. With the team, we tried to make it so we arrived in a small group for the finish, which we did perfectly, and I won in the sprint."
Results
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'He was stopped there forever' - brutal Giro d'Italia crash sees GC contender Derek Gee-West injured and lose time after long lone chase
Canadian manages to limit losses to a minute as neutralised race restarted before he regains contact with main group -
La Vuelta Femenina abandons – 102 riders finish the race atop the Alto de L'Angliru
Tracking the riders who have dropped out of the first Grand Tour of the season -
'In the end, I just came up short' – Anna van der Breggen loses La Vuelta Femenina in final 4km on 'frustrating' Angliru
Disappointment but also satisfaction at SD Worx-Protime, who won three stages, a podium spot, the points jersey, and the team prize -
'The most important thing is that the guys manage to recover' – UAE Team Emirates-XRG rue tough day at Giro d'Italia as five riders crash
Jay Vine and Marc Soler abandon after bad mass crash on stage 2 as a visibly bloodied Adam Yates loses nearly 14 minutes
