Milan goes early as the finale explodes
The closing kilometres had already been tense before the sprint even began. The breakaway was only brought back late, and the rolling roads into Sofia made the chase harder to control than the profile first suggested.
Horner highlighted the difficulty Lidl-Trek faced in timing the finale, especially with wide roads, rolling terrain and a late cobbled section near the line. “Wide roads, so it’s hard to get the timing right when it’s super wide roads,” Horner said, recalling the pre-stage assessment from Lidl-Trek sports director Gregory Rast. “My own opinion is that when you have the rollers coming in super wide, it makes it incredibly hard because everyone loses a little bit of power when you’re going 50, 60 plus kilometres an hour.”
Lidl-Trek nevertheless put Milan in a position to challenge. Max Walscheid and Simone Consonni were both involved in the lead-out, while Soudal – Quick-Step, Unibet Rose Rockets and others fought for control as the bunch finally swept up the breakaway.
With around 275 metres to go, Milan made his move. “Johnny Milan started his acceleration,” Horner said. “He started his acceleration going to the centre of the road, going all the way over to the left.”
At that moment, Milan had Paul Magnier tracking him. Dylan Groenewegen, Madis Mihkels and Erlend Blikra were also in the mix behind, but the sprint quickly became a battle between Milan’s early power and Magnier’s late speed.
“He must have had some turbo”
The decisive moment came as Milan hit the rough final sector. Horner was particularly struck by the way the Italian tried to keep producing power over the uneven surface, even as his bike began to bounce beneath him. “Johnny Milan leading, exiting out with 100 metres to go as he exits the left bend,” Horner explained. “He comes onto the cobblestones right now. Cobble bricks, as we see immediately, starts on the cobbles. He’s got to sit down for a second.”
That brief disruption opened the door for Magnier, who remained smoother through the same section. “When he’s sitting down, look who’s still standing up. Paul Magnier still standing up, starting his acceleration coming up the left side of Johnny Milan,” Horner continued.
Even so, Milan’s raw effort caught Horner’s eye. “As we see, the back wheel’s getting a little bit airborne there. That means it’s getting rough and bumpy here, but it doesn’t show in the cameras, but it does show in his bike,” he said. “Johnny Milan’s out and he starts sprinting and then you see his front tyre come up off the ground too. He must have had some turbo.”
Milan, Magnier and Groenewegen all threw their bikes at the line, but it was the Soudal – Quick-Step rider who again came out on top. Milan had to settle for second, with Groenewegen third.
Jonathan Milan crosses the line on stage 3 of the 2026 Giro d’Italia
Magnier lands another blow in sprint hierarchy
For Milan, the result was another near miss rather than a poor performance. After the chaos of Stage 1 and the unusual demands of the Stage 3 finale, he has twice been in the fight for victory without yet finding the winning sprint.
Horner felt the final metres told the story clearly. Milan went first, but Magnier had the cleaner finish. “Paul Magnier side by side, just starting to inch out when we get into about 25 metres to go, but they’re still side by side, all three,” he said. “It’s going to start being a bike throw here with about five metres to go. Dylan Groenewegen the first rider to throw his bike on the left side, second rider to throw his bike’s going to be Paul Magnier, third rider to throw his bike is going to be Johnny Milan, but the victory goes to Paul Magnier.”
Groenewegen later suggested his team had put him in position, but that he waited too long. Horner broadly agreed, arguing the Dutchman had been delivered into a winning spot by Unibet Rose Rockets.
“Dylan Groenewegen said in his interview that his team was perfect. He just waited too long,” Horner said. “Johnny Milan probably attacked a bit early, probably caught Dylan Groenewegen a little offhand, but Rose Rockets certainly delivered Dylan Groenewegen into a winning spot. He just mistimed it.”
Milan’s problem was different. He committed first and almost made it work. Against a rider as sharp as Magnier, on a finish that rewarded both power and timing, almost was not enough.
The first three stages have now given the Giro a clear sprint rivalry, with Magnier two from two in bunch finishes and Milan still knocking hard on the door. For the Italian, the wins have not arrived yet, but the power is clearly there.