The crash that involved Giovanni Lonardi in the final stages of the second stage of the Tour of Turkey caused great concern. The sprinter for Polti VisitMalta, expected in less than two weeks for a prestigious engagement called the Giro d'Italia, hit the ground hard due to a reckless maneuver by a Turkish rider who, with too much enthusiasm, lost his balance right beside him and dragged him at high speed across the asphalt.

Despite the rather rough dynamics, Lonardi nevertheless presented himself at the start of the third stage from Marmaris where, heavily bandaged, before getting on the pedal he expressed to our microphones all his displeasure about a tumble that could have been avoided and which, instead, will lead him to approach the Giro d'Italia with some bumps and bruises that he certainly would have done without.

"It's a race where, from day one, there's quite a bit of confusion. I ended up on the ground because a Turkish rider, who had already almost made us crash at the last kilometer, acted a bit like a kamikaze…fortunately I didn't break anything but it's more disappointing than anything else because that's how you get hurt and I have a Giro d'Italia to do soon" commented the Veronese sprinter, not hiding his frustration over an incident that came at a time in the season when everything was going in the desired direction.

"I was doing well. The fitness levels, the training, everything was as it should be before the start of this race where I came with the intention of fine-tuning my condition while also taking advantage of the always pleasant climate around here and instead we ended up on the ground like this. Of course, it's something that happens, but when it happens in this way it's a bit frustrating. Furthermore, we had received a yellow card the day before but neither in our opinion nor according to the team that we would have harmed was any misconduct committed, while in this case no action was taken" Lonardi continued before briefly analyzing what he had done in the first four months of 2026.

"Certainly for me, as a sprinter, it would have been better to win, but managing to do so is never easy. In general, I'm quite satisfied, I had a bit of bad luck here and there (see Almeria where I also crashed in that case), but it didn't go so badly. I was hoping to do well here, something that has almost always worked for me in the past, but we crashed. In any case, between today and tomorrow, maybe we'll try again to throw ourselves into the fray".

If that doesn't happen, Polti VisitMalta can still count on the other leading sprinter in its roster for the sprint finishes in the coming days, Manuel Peñalver, a rider with whom Lonardi has no problem cooperating to make the colors of Basso and Contador's team shine in the fast finishes.

"We get along well, we've been racing together for a few years now, but doing it here isn't easy, because we're not the only ones launching into a two-man sprint" the twenty-nine-year-old Venetian rider revealed to us. "Other teams, in fact, have two or even three men engaged in the sprint and, overall, there are no defined lead-out trains. Plus there are also these local teams that aren't used to racing often in Europe and don't follow our dynamics, but we accept it. Apart from that, we get along well together, we cooperate and talk to each other but here, as in other places actually, the finales are really chaotic with people who, sometimes, launch themselves as if there's no tomorrow" Lonardi reiterated, then ready to have his say on a topic of great relevance such as the safety of sprinters nowadays.

"It's not that we're less protected, it's that, compared to before, it's different. Previously in sprints there were more lead-out trains and some aspects were more defined, today instead there's more confusion with fewer men alongside the sprinters but more teams launching into sprints. Then, it's true, the bikes are faster, but we shouldn't forget that we often race on roads and in safety conditions that should be reflected upon. From this point of view, in my opinion, there's still a lot of work to be done. Some think that certain problems can be solved simply by perhaps removing two motorcycles, but when you then go to race at "minor" events you find yourself encountering the same situations as always" Giovanni explained, giving his vision on the critical issues that still affect the world of sprints and, more generally, contemporary road cycling.

"There's quite a bit to improve, in short. The issuance of yellow cards and disqualifications should also happen with a more defined method: here at Turkey, if the videos of the first two stages had been analyzed, both the first and second day three or four people should have been disqualified. For this reason, in my opinion, you need to have a clear line that says what is allowed and what isn't and apply it".

On the front of optimization and application of regulations for Lonardi, therefore, there's still a long way to go, while as far as the seasonal results of his Polti VisitMalta are concerned, the Italian representative can be said to have made a certainly convincing journey so far, winning, among victories and placements, a substantial amount of UCI points and a fairly comfortable ranking in the team standings.

"We're happy with what we've done. Last Sunday we brought home a first and second place at the Giro dell'Appennino, at Hainan previously we had collected many points…we need to continue like this now also because I think it's still premature to start making calculations. Ivan and Alberto? They too, like the whole team, are satisfied, morale is high and here too, as in all the other races we've competed in and will race in the future starting with the Giro, we will always try to do well" announced a Lonardi who, once he's filed away the pain and bumps and bruises, won't hesitate to launch himself into a sprint again to give his team, whether at the Giro d'Italia or gritting his teeth here at Turkey too, new reasons for celebration.