TAGLIACOZZO, Italy — Primož Roglič took the overall lead of the Giro d'Italia and Juan Ayuso impressed with his victory in the first summit finish on Friday.
The Spaniard earned his first ever Grand Tour stage victory with a burst of energy 400 meters before the end of the seventh stage, ahead of his UAE Team Emirates teammate Isaac Del Toro and Egan Bernal.
Roglič, the pre-race favorite and 2023 champion, crossed next — the peloton all four seconds back.
It was good enough for Roglič to take the pink jersey. Ayuso improved to second overall, trailing Roglič by four seconds. Del Toro was third, nine seconds off the lead.
Friday's stage was the hardest so far with four classified climbs on the 168-kilometer (104 mile) route from Castel di Sangro, including the top category ascent to the finish in Tagliacozzo.
''This win is a big step in my career,'' Ayuso said. ''This is my fourth Grand Tour, I've been close to winning at the Vuelta. To do it today at my first Giro d'Italia is special.''
Ayuso calculated his late push.
''I knew that I could do only one attack and not mess around with two or three on this final which was very explosive,'' he said. ''Others started attacking before. When I saw my distance I went full gas. It was important to not only get the win but also try and recover the time I lost in the time trial."
