Not yet, Italy, not yet. Giulio Pellizzari is the present and future of Italian general classification racing, but he – and his countrymen – will have to wait until he can truly be rated as a Giro d’Italia challenger. On stage nine of the 2026 edition, a day when Jonas Vingegaard and Felix Gall cemented their statuses as the race’s two outstanding GC men, Pellizzari went backwards, shipping 1:28 to stage winner Vingegaard. Going into the rest day, the Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe 22-year-old has a deficit of almost three minutes to the Dane superstar and sits in ninth overall.
Before the race there was hope – not a lot given Vingegaard’s presence, but hope nonetheless – that this Giro could be Pellizzari’s. Two years ago, when Tadej Pogačar won six stages and the race by almost 10 minutes, Pellizzari was the only other rider who made a notable, long-lasting impression. A fresh-faced 20-year-old debutant for VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizane, the laughing, smiling boy from central Italy with Gen Z floppy hair lit up various stages, announcing himself as his country’s next big star.
Last year, his first in the WorldTour, Pellizzari finished sixth at both the Giro and the Vuelta a España. Red Bull were feeling grateful, and no doubt boastful, that they had beaten a host of their rivals to his signature. Third at Tirreno-Adriatico this spring, followed by a win at the Tour of Alps, only added to the hype. So much has the expectation around him increased, that it was reported just this week that he will be commanding an annual wage of €1.5m in his next contract, whether with Red Bull (his current deal ends in 2028) or elsewhere. It’s not just Italy enthused and excited by Pellizzari, but the whole sport is. This Giro, though, is not set to be his breakthrough GC performance – unless something drastic changes.
On stage seven, the race’s first summit finish to Blockhaus, Pellizzari held onto Vingegaard’s wheel for a kilometre, prompting Italy to believe, really believe. But then he cracked. His legs gave away. He didn’t pace his own effort and ended up losing 52 seconds to Gall, who emerged as Vingegaard’s closest adversary.
Two days later, on the climb to Corno alle Scale, Pellizzari didn’t even get within a few inches of Vingegaard. Decathlon CMA CGM pulled in the final hour of racing, relinquishing Visma-Lease a Bike of the responsibility, in their attempt to tee Gall up for a stage-winning attack. Gall eventually made his move with 2.5km to go, but Vingegaard was with him and then passed him, crossing the line 12 seconds ahead of the Austrian.
By this point Pellizzari was way back. He had been struggling to hold on to Decathlon’s pace, and when the road ramped up on the Corno alle Scale climb he lost contact with the front group. Come the finish he was 22nd, beaten by placeholder race leader Afonso Eulalio, his teammate Jai Hindley and even Jan Hirt – riders he had hoped he would be in his rearview mirror. After nine stages he’s ninth overall, almost three minutes back from Vingegaard.
This is not to criticise Pellizzari. He is an outstanding bike rider and his willingness to attack, to be bold, to try, are qualities that should not be trained out of him. He’s as fun on the bike as he is off it. But what we – and definitely him – have learned in this first week of Giro racing is that he still has quite a way to go before he can be considered a genuine Giro contender.
That’s entirely normal – this is only his fourth Grand Tour, and only his second year competing for a superteam. But Italy has to accept that Vincenzo Nibali, who won his second and final Corsa Rosa in 2016, will remain their last maglia rosa winner for a while longer yet. In Pellizzari and his even younger Red Bull teammate Lorenzo Finn, Italy has options in the near-future, but for the meantime Italy’s home Grand Tour is likely to remain the happiest hunting ground for riders outside its borders. As things stand at the halfway mark, it’s Vingegaard v Gall in the battle for pink.
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