The Voice of the Master belongs to Jonas Vingegaard, a gentle dominator who tends to shy away when compared to Merckx, citing the Cannibal's victory here back in 1967. Even with anti-diva attitudes, he remains a tyrant nonetheless, cycling-wise speaking the Danish rider, who transformed Majella into a special fjord swept by the wind.

That command post, the Blockhaus, also becomes a strong premise for the days to come. The Gazzetta says so ("Jonas chose an iconic place to inaugurate what he hopes will be a series of successes"), and Repubblica reiterates it, describing Vingegaard's show of strength and citing how the pink newspaper conveyed the message sent by the Giro to Tadej Pogacar, the yellow jersey captain's arch-rival.

Courage or recklessness from a 22-year-old in Giulio Pellizzari's attempt to stick to Vingo's wheel? The rider from the Marche region, notes Marco Bonarrigo, "had only one second to choose between heart and reason, to decide whether to glue himself to Jonas Vingegaard's wheel or (try to) catch him in progression. At 22 years old, the reasons of the heart prevailed". Romantic and ruthless, things typical of cycling.

Back to good Jonas, "he may have been a fisherman, but he doesn't use a net. For now he casts a line and takes only the minimum necessary to be at peace with himself" - thus Pier Augusto Stagi on Il Giornale. In all this flourishing of articles, La Stampa dedicates only a brief news item to a stage of this magnitude: a pity, is a corrective page needed? L'Equipe, bless them, despite being a sports newspaper par excellence, is now pleasantly specialized in opening paragraphs that describe the scene of the crime. To come across the name Vingegaard, moreover towering in the headline with an accompanying nice photo from the roadside, you need to read quite a few lines into Julien Chesnais's article. An envoy captivated by the green pastures of the Blockhaus...and the smoke from the arrosticini on the grill.

GAZZETTA DELLO SPORT
THE VOICE OF THE MASTER
When you end up bringing up Eddy Merckx, who won his first Giro d'Italia stage victory right here on the Blockhaus in 1967, Jonas Vingegaard is almost embarrassed: "What a comparison... Let's say I know how important this mountain is, the meaning it has, and being able to conquer it is special, for me and for the team". Multiple times, Tadej Pogacar himself has called the Danish rider the best climber in the world: on his debut in the Gazzetta's race, yesterday Jonas chose an iconic place to inaugurate what he hopes will be a series of successes. (Ciro Scognamiglio)

CORRIERE DELLA SERA
PELLIZZARI'S MISTAKE, VINGEGAARD LEAVES HIM BEHIND
5,200 meters from the first uphill finish of the Giro d'Italia, Giulio Pellizzari had only one second to choose between heart and reason, to decide whether to glue himself to Jonas Vingegaard's wheel or (try to) catch him in progression. At 22 years old, the reasons of the heart frequently prevail and Giulio immediately stuck himself to Vingo's rear wheel, who attacked him in the face three times without shaking him off. The head-to-head thrilled us for 600 meters: on the fourth attack Pellizzari opened his mouth gasping for oxygen and shifted down two gears while the Danish rider disappeared over the horizon. (Marco Bonarrigo)

REPUBBLICA
VINGEGAARD, SHOW OF STRENGTH ON BLOCKHAUS HAS NO RIVALS
V for victory, certainly not for revenge, even though the message that Vingegaard sent from Majella will have reached his arch-rival in yellow Tadej Pogacar. Jonas is here, the warm-up outing called the Giro d'Italia is going well so far. After conquering the Blockhaus, he had time to kiss the sticker on the handlebars with his wife Trine and his two little children, then as always he called home, as you do when leaving the office. (Cosimo Cito)

IL GIORNALE
ON THE BLOCKHAUS VINGEGAARD TEACHES AND PELLIZZARI LEARNS
In the end, he should also be thanked, because he takes the stage without taking the race. He takes home the first mountain finish of this Giro, but he doesn't take the race. Jonas Vingegaard, he may have been a fisherman, but he doesn't use a net. For now he casts a line and takes only the minimum necessary to be at peace with himself. To add to his very personal palmares (two Tours and a Vuelta), also the first stage in the pink race: rest assured, it won't be the only one, it won't be the last. (Pier Augusto Stagi)

L'EQUIPE
VINGEGAARD THE FIRST ARROW
Between two icy downpours, the smoke rising from the grills where the famous arrosticini are being prepared rises horizontally here, near the finish line. The Italian meteorological service has now placed Abruzzo on moderate alert status, but the crackling is muffled by the warmth up there on the slopes of Monte Blockhaus (2143 m), dotted with green pastures, gray scree and still-closed ski lifts, still covered by a thick layer of snow. The leading cyclists found shelter at the Albergo Mamma Rosa, located at the finish line at an altitude of 1665 meters. (Julien Chesnais)

TUTTOSPORT
VINGEGAARD, AN ATTACK LIKE MERCKX
Danish Jonas Vingegaard emulates Eddy Merckx. The great Belgian achieved his first victory in a Giro d'Italia stage on May 31, 1967 at the Blockhaus. Vingegaard 59 years later imitated him on the popular Abruzzo mountain, sending an important signal to the race and eliminating from the fight for the final podium Egan Bernal, Enric Mas, Jan Christen and other rated climbers. (Alessandro Brambilla)

CORRIERE DELLO SPORT
JONAS 10 AND HONORS
Faster than the wind. Despite the terrible gusts that almost tore the Italian flags and those honoring the pirate Pantani from their poles, the yellow-and-black silhouette of Jonas Vingegaard appeared at the top of the Blockhaus to begin his assault on the Giro d'Italia. (Alberto Dolfin)