Stage 15

The road

At the start

The Zoncolan, and a jersey in play

David Arroyo took the maglia rosa on Monte Grappa and leads Richie Porte by 39 seconds and Carlos Sastre by 5:27; Nibali is eighth at 6:51 and Basso further back still. Today is 222 kilometres from Mestre over the Sella Chianzutan and the Passo Duron to Monte Zoncolan, ten kilometres at almost twelve per cent and touching twenty-two. The men who lost this race at L'Aquila have to start taking it back here.

How it was won

1. 177 km to go

   Liquigas take over

   The road tilts up for the first time on the Sella Chianzutan and Liquigas-Doimo move to the front of the peloton. Between here and the summit finish they will not leave it.

2. 240 km to go

   The Duron does the damage

   Four and a half kilometres at nine and a half per cent with ramps of eighteen, and the peloton comes apart on it. Riders who will be needed on the Zoncolan are already gone.

3. 310 km to go

   Onto the Zoncolan

   Ten kilometres at nearly twelve per cent, touching twenty-two, and men have fitted 34x29 for it. Scarponi accelerates first, Basso answers harder, and only Scarponi, Evans and Pinotti are still there.

4. 46 km to go

   Into the twenty-two per cent

   Six kilometres from the top the gradient turns vertical and Basso lifts it again. Pinotti is long gone; now Scarponi goes too. Two men left, and one of them is riding within himself.

5. 54 km to go

   Basso rides away from Evans

   On a twenty per cent ramp with 3.7 kilometres left Basso stands once and the world champion cracks. Evans digs again at 2.5 to go and gets nothing back, and the Italian just keeps turning the same enormous rhythm through a mountainside of people and three tunnels of sudden silence, taking seconds with every stroke.

6. 6At the line

   Basso wins the first round

   Basso crosses the summit 1:19 clear of Evans, with Scarponi at 1:30. The favourites have finally shown themselves, and the strongest of them is a man riding his first Giro back.

The result