How is Filippo Baroncini? Better, much better. This is what Mauro Gianetti and Andrea Agostini say, what the entire Uae Team Emirates XRG staff says who has experienced days of anguish since August 6th. "We can say that the worst is over, but we need to be patient, we shouldn't rush: Filippo needs to take all the time necessary to heal - says Mauro Gianetti, team leader of the Emirati squad, to tuttobiciweb -. What happened to him was not a simple fall, today we can say: the worst is behind us and Filippo has an incredible character, he is surprising us with how he is facing this delicate moment".

Fallen on August 6th at the Tour of Poland, the Romagna rider is currently hospitalized at Niguarda where on August 19th he underwent two extremely delicate surgical procedures: one maxillofacial and another on the spine (in Poland at Walbrzych, he had been operated on for his collarbone). "His face was disfigured and you can't imagine what they managed to do at Niguarda by Professor Gabriele Canzi, maxillofacial specialist and surgeon Davide Colistra - Gianetti tells us -. They did something incredible, in over 11 hours of surgery: today medical science has made giant leaps forward. Things are done that were unimaginable just a few years ago. I don't want to go into details, because it's not appropriate, but I assure you they did something exceptional".

Echoing him is Andrea Agostini, Chief Operating Officer of the team. "What happened to Filippo is incredible and raises some questions, perhaps more than one. First, there's a lot of talk about safety, and always putting teams and riders at the center of the discussion, who are even punished, along with mechanical means, with the proposal of reducing gear ratios, but I wonder: are the organizers exempt from everything? I'm not accusing anyone, but I'm asking questions, perhaps it's time to sit down and discuss this with absolute serenity. Before being transported to the hospital, Filippo remained conscious on the ground for over forty minutes, Mauro (Gianetti, ed) knows this well and has taken charge of the issue, but it wasn't clear why he was loaded into an ambulance and then not transported to the nearest hospital as the case demanded, waiting for another to arrive. Filippo's face was disfigured, with such a blow to the head, you couldn't wait that long. Then I would like to say another thing: in this matter, we must thank the Ineos doctor, Dr. Robert Kempers and Miki Kwiathowski. Miki, who had fallen to the ground with Pippo and other riders, was immediately reached by his team doctor who was nearby, but the guy made sure to tell him that he was fine and didn't need anything, but to help Filippo, because he immediately realized the situation was dramatic. Dr. Kempers was exceptional, he performed the first rescue operations and we can only be grateful to him, confirming that cycling is a great family, where competition is fierce, but in important moments we are all together".

For the record, Filippo is doing well, talking and meeting relatives and friends. His morale is high, he could be discharged in a few days.