However, on the first two big mountain tests, Piganzoli has actually been the one making the biggest difference, rather than Kuss. When asked about this, Piganzoli made it clear that they share the job of being the final helper.
“Every day that can be different,” Piganzoli said. “Sepp and I are here to help Jonas as much and as well as possible and if one feels better than the other, he will be the last man.”
On the Blockhaus, Piganzoli was definitely feeling good. When he went to the front and pushed the pace, several big-name riders could not keep up and were dropped from the group, including Egan Bernal and Enric Mas.
Jonas Vingegaard won stage 7 of the Giro d’Italia 2026
No personal goals
Even though he is riding at a very high level, Piganzoli is not thinking about riding for his own spot in the general classification. He is fully focused on his job as a helper. “A personal GC is not an issue at all,” he stated. “We are really only here to win the Giro with Jonas, he is the strongest rider and is therefore our only leader. We all work for him.”
This strong team effort has been in the works for a while. Piganzoli and Vingegaard trained together at high altitude on Mount Teide earlier this year, planning to do exactly what they did on stage 7.
“When we were there, we already talked about the Blockhaus,” he noted. “We were really looking forward to it and Jonas looks great.