Darren Rafferty, the Irish rider competing for EF Education-EasyPost, leads the stage 4 breakaway during the Giro's first day in Italy (Photo: Fabio Ferrari)
Darren Rafferty (EF Education-EasyPost) has wasted no time in trying to make the most of his chances on Giro d'Italia 2026. The Co Tyrone rider - and former Island Wheeler - got up the road on stage 4 today, Tuesday, on the race's first day in Italy.
The 22-year-old, competing in his third Grand Tour, spent almost 90km on the attack today, having started the day just 10 seconds off the maglia rosa. However, his presence in that group meant it was kept on a tight leash ahead of the day's only climb.
The main aim of the breakaway group was to try and stay away and fight for the stage, in which case Rafferty would have gone into the race lead. At the very least, they would have hoped to remain clear until after the climb.
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But when they reached the base of that Cozzo Tunno climb - some 14.4km averaging six per cent and crested 44km from the finish - their advantage was below two minutes.
Movistar then took it up on the front of the bunch, setting a blistering pace from the start of the climb in a bid to get rid of the sprinters in the field. As the Spanish team applied the pressure, riders were being spat out the back in quick succession.
Italy’s Mattia Bais of Team Polti VisitMalta and Ireland’s Darren Rafferty of EF Education-Easypost where the last of the breakaway men to be caught on the climb (Photo: Fabio Ferrari)
The advantage enjoyed by the breakaway also tumbled. About halfway up the climb, Rafferty and Mattia Bais (Team Polti VisitMalta) were the last of the attackers still out front when they were caught.
And though the Irishman remained in the group for the next 4-5km, he was then among those who drifted off the back. He lost contact just a little too far from the top of the climb to have a realistic chance of getting back on.
In the end, a group of 34 riders went to the line in Cosenza, after 138km, to fight for victory, which went to Jhonatan Narváez (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), from Movistar's Orluis Aular.
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Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) was 3rd and the six bonus seconds he took today have lifted him into the race lead. Today's maglia rosa, Guillermo Thomas Silva (XDS Astana Team), was unexpectedly dropped on the climb and lost over 12 minutes.
After his breakaway efforts, Rafferty finished in 64th, in a large group at 2:55. However, while he has now slipped down the overall standings, to 43rd at 3:05, he is clearly feeling good. He has now lost enough time to get some leeway for further attacks.
He went off the front very early today and was joined by the others in the move: Bais, Warren Barguil (Picnic-PostNL Raisin), Johan Jacobs (Groupama-FDJ United), Niklas Larsen (Unibet Rose Rockets) and Martin Marcellusi (Bardiani CSF-Saber 7).
They built a gap of two minutes with 30km done but never got much further ahead. It was a day when they really would have needed at least five minutes when they reached the climb to have a chance of making it.
However, the way Movistar rode today - clearly trying to set get a stage win for eventual runner-up Aular - meant any breakaway would have had a hard time holding off the bunch.
Ryan Mullen (NSN Cycling Team), who was very prominent during the opening three stages in Bulgaria, had a quieter time today.
His sprinters, Ethan Vernon and Corbin Strong, were always unlikely to feature in the final today so Mullen was not sent into action on the front chasing the breakaway.
The race continues tomorrow with a long and lumpy 203km from Praia a Mare to Potenza, featuring over 3,700m of climbing, though with no major mountains and no uphill finish.
