Mark Cavendish takes 100th win as Wiggins' Giro bid falters

Mark Cavendish wins stage 12 of 2013 Giro d'Italia

Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) won his 100th victory as a professional on a rain soaked and tumultuos day at the Giro d'Italia that saw the overall chances of Bradley Wiggins (Sky) all but disappear on the road to Treviso.

A well-drilled chase and leadout from Omega Pharma-Quickstep caught the day's breakaway with metres to spare and the Manxman duly delivered in a messy sprint ahead of Nacer Bouhanni (FDJ) and Luka Mezgec (Argos-Shimano).

Meanwhile Wiggins, reportedly suffering from a cold and struggling once again on the sodden asphalt, lost over three minutes on Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) and Cadel Evans (BMC).

Griding a big gear and grimacing into the rain, he lost touch with the pink jersey group inside the final 30km of the shortest stage of this year's Giro and will surely have waved goodbye to his chances of overall victory, slipping to 13th overall.

Nearly all of his Sky teammates dropped back in vain to help with the chase, however Rigoberto Uran crucially kept up with the front group to consolidate third overall and now become Sky's de facto leader.

Bittersweet day for the Brits

Talk this morning was of Cavendish's chance to make it 100 wins as a professional and his Omega Pharma-Quickstep team lived up to expectations, taking control of the three-hour stage, that included two category four climbs, from the gun.

The day's break of Marco Marcato (Vacansoleil-DCM), Maurits Lammertink (Vacansoleil-DCM), Bart De Backer (Argos-Shimano), Maxim Belkov (Katusha) and Fabio Felline (Androni-Venezuela) never achieved more than four minutes, although the quintet did appear to have misread the script as they stayed away until the final few hundred metres.

As Cavendish celebrated his 100th win by throwing a t-shirt with '100' on it to the crowd, Wiggins waved goodbye to his chances of victory and the coveted Giro-Tour double. 

For very different reasons, whether either one of the pair will continue any further in this year's race after this evening remains to be seen.

Results

Giro d'Italia 2013, stage 12: Longarone to Treviso, 134km

1. Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) in 3-01-47

2. Nacer Bouhanni (FDJ)

3. Luka Mezgec (Argos-Shimano)

4. Giacomo Nizzolo (Radioshack-Leopard)

5. Brett Lancaster (Orica-GreenEdge)

6. Manuel Belletti (Ag2r-La Mondiale)

7. Roberto Ferrari (Lampre-Merida)

8. Sacha Modolo (Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox)

9. Ioannis Tamoridis (Euskaltel-Euskadi)

10. Francesco Ventoso (Movistar) all at s.t.

Others

122. Bradley Wiggins (Sky) at 3-17

Overall classification after stage 12

1. Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) in 46-28-14

2. Cadel Evans (BMC) at 41 secs

3. Rigoberto Uran (Sky) at 2-04

4. Robert Gesink (Blanco) at 2-12

5. Michele Scarponi (Lampre-Merida) at 2-13

6. Mauro Santambrogio (Vini Fantini-Selle Italia) at 2-55

7. Przemyslaw Niemiec (Lampre-Merida) at 3-35

8. Benat Inxausti (Movistar) at 4-05

9. Domenico Pozzovivo (Ag2r-La Mondiale) at 4-17

10. Rafal Majka (Saxo-Tinkoff) at 4-21

Others

13. Bradley Wiggins (Sky) at 5-32

Giro d'Italia 2013: Previews and race info

Giro d'Italia 2013: Coverage index

Giro d'Italia 2013: British TV schedule

Giro 2013: 10 things you need to know

Giro d'Italia 2013: The Big Preview

Giro d'Italia 2013: Stage reports

Stage 11: Navardauskas wins solo as favourites enjoy day off

Stage 10: Uran wins as Wiggins and Hesjedal lose time

Stage nine: Belkov takes solo win as Wiggins put under pressure

Stage eight: Dowsett wins as Nibali takes race lead

Stage seven: Wiggins crashes as Hansen wins

Stage six: Cavendish wins stage six of Giro

Stage five: Degenkolb avoids crash to take win

Stage four: Battaglin sprints to first Giro stage win

Stage three: Paolini takes charge

Stage two: Sky wins team time trial

Stage one: Cavendish wins opener

Giro d'Italia 2013: Photo galleries

Photos by Graham Watson

Stage 11 gallery

Stage 10 gallery

Stage nine gallery

Stage eight gallery

Stage seven gallery

Stage six gallery

Stage five gallery

Stage four gallery

Stage three gallery

Stage two gallery

Stage one gallery

Team presentation gallery

 

Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Founded in 1891, Cycling Weekly and its team of expert journalists brings cyclists in-depth reviews, extensive coverage of both professional and domestic racing, as well as fitness advice and 'brew a cuppa and put your feet up' features. Cycling Weekly serves its audience across a range of platforms, from good old-fashioned print to online journalism, and video.