Afonso Eulálio will take the maglia rosa into the Alps after a relatively calm day for the general classification on Giro d’Italia 2026 stage 13. The GC favourites finished together in Verbania, allowing the Bahrain Victorious rider to retain a 33-second lead over Jonas Vingegaard before the race heads to the summit finish at Pila.
The stage itself went to Alberto Bettiol, who attacked from the breakaway on the final climb and soloed to victory in Verbania. Andreas Leknessund finished second at 26 seconds, with Jasper Stuyven third at 44 seconds, while the main peloton came in more than 13 minutes later. It was Bettiol’s second Giro stage win and XDS Astana’s third victory of the race, after earlier wins for Guillermo Thomas Silva and Davide Ballerini.
That meant no late shake-up before the Giro’s next major mountain test. Eulálio kept pink, Vingegaard stayed close enough to keep the pressure high, and the rest of the podium contenders reached the line without losing time. After the breakaway days to Chiavari, Novi Ligure and Verbania, the race now turns back towards the GC battle on stage 14 to Pila.
Giro d’Italia 2026 general classification after stage 13
Eulálio remains in control on paper, but the margin is still small. Thirty-three seconds over Vingegaard is a meaningful lead, but not a secure one with the Aosta Valley mountain stage coming next. Thymen Arensman continues in third overall at 2:03, with Felix Gall fourth at 2:30 and Ben O’Connor fifth at 2:50.
- Afonso Eulálio, Bahrain Victorious, 52:15:17
- Jonas Vingegaard, Team Visma | Lease a Bike, +0:33
- Thymen Arensman, Netcompany-Ineos, +2:03
- Felix Gall, Decathlon CMA CGM, +2:30
- Ben O’Connor, Team Jayco AlUla, +2:50
- Jai Hindley, Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe, +3:12
- Michael Storer, Tudor Pro Cycling, +3:34
- Derek Gee-West, Lidl-Trek, +3:40
- Giulio Pellizzari, Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe, +3:42
- Chris Harper, Pinarello Q36.5, +4:15
The key point is that the top 10 remained stable, but the next stage is built to disturb that order. Stage 14 is only 133km, yet it climbs repeatedly through the Aosta Valley before the summit finish at Pila. It is exactly the kind of day where a 33-second race lead can either become stronger or disappear completely.
Eulálio keeps pink, but the pressure is obvious
Eulálio has now survived several different tests in pink. He held the jersey through the time trial to Massa, the hilly stage to Chiavari, the sprint ambush at Novi Ligure and the breakaway-dominated day to Verbania. Stage 13 was not the kind of route where Vingegaard was likely to make a full GC move, but it was still a useful day for Eulálio because nothing went wrong.
That said, the shape of the Giro still favours pressure from Visma. Vingegaard sits close enough that he does not need a long-range raid to move into pink. A stage win, bonus seconds and a small gap on Pila would be enough to change the race completely.
Eulálio’s task now becomes very specific. He does not need to match Vingegaard attack for attack if the Dane accelerates on the final climb. He needs to manage the gap, avoid panic and keep enough of a buffer to extend his race lead into the final week.
Vingegaard remains poised before Pila
Vingegaard is still exactly where he needs to be. The Giro has not escaped him, and the next terrain is much more favourable than stage 13. The stage to Verbania was one for breakaway strength and late puncheur timing. The stage to Pila is a much cleaner GC climbing test.
Team Visma | Lease a Bike will also know that stage 14 offers more than one opportunity to apply pressure. The final climb is the obvious point, but the repeated climbs beforehand could be used to thin out Bahrain Victorious and isolate Eulálio before the final ascent.
That is the danger for the race leader. Vingegaard can win this Giro by taking time in small, controlled blocks, but Pila gives him the terrain to make a much bigger statement.
Arensman still on the podium
Arensman remains third overall, 2:03 down on Eulálio and 1:30 behind Vingegaard. That is a strong position after the time trial, but the next block of mountain racing will ask a different question. He has to show he can stay with the best climbers when the race is repeatedly difficult rather than simply hard in one final effort.
Gall is the rider closest to him, only 27 seconds further back. That matters because the Austrian should like the Pila stage far more than he liked the time trial. If Gall climbs at his best, Arensman’s podium position could come under pressure quickly.
O’Connor, Hindley, Storer, Gee-West, Pellizzari and Harper remain close enough for the top 10 to keep moving. The race has not yet stretched into the kind of gaps that make the podium fight fixed. One bad Alpine day could undo several riders at once.
Magnier keeps the points jersey
Paul Magnier continues to lead the points classification after stage 13, although the competition is tightening. Jhonatan Narváez has been the major disruptor in the ciclamino battle, using repeated breakaway success and stage victories to turn what once looked like a sprinter’s race into something much more complicated.
Stage 13 also helped Jasper Stuyven, who took third in Verbania and added another strong haul of points from the breakaway. That does not change the leadership, but it reinforces the pattern of this Giro: the points competition has not been shaped only by bunch sprints. Breakaway days, reduced finishes and medium stages have all mattered.
That leaves Magnier under pressure before the next flat opportunity. He still has sprint stages to target, but he cannot rely on bunch finishes alone if Narváez keeps collecting points from harder stages.
Vingegaard still leads the mountains classification
Vingegaard remains the mountains leader after stage 13, with the race now heading into terrain that could strengthen his position further. The stage to Verbania offered late climbing points, but it did not alter the fundamental picture at the top of the blue jersey standings.
The bigger question is whether Vingegaard even needs to think about the mountains classification directly. His priority is pink, and if he wins or places highly on summit finishes, the blue jersey may take care of itself. Stage 14 to Pila offers a huge opportunity for him to add points while also attacking the general classification.
Diego Pablo Sevilla, Felix Gall and other climbers remain in the conversation, but Vingegaard’s advantage is tied to the same thing that makes him so dangerous overall: he has been scoring heavily on the hardest finishes.
Photo Credit: RCSEulálio also keeps the white jersey
Eulálio also remains leader of the young rider classification. That gives him two responsibilities on the road: defending pink against Vingegaard and protecting white against the next generation of climbers behind him.
Pellizzari remains the most obvious threat in the white jersey fight, sitting ninth overall at 3:42. His position in the GC also makes him more than just a young rider classification contender. Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe can use him tactically alongside Hindley, especially if the race becomes more chaotic in the high mountains.
For Eulálio, the white jersey is secondary to pink, but it still underlines how unusual his Giro has been. He is not merely surviving near the front as a young rider. He is carrying the whole race lead into one of the most important mountain stages of the 2026 Giro.
What stage 13 changes before the Alps
Stage 13 did not change the GC standings, but it did sharpen the contrast before Pila. The breakaway riders took another major opportunity, Astana continued their outstanding Giro, and the favourites avoided a risky day without wasting unnecessary energy.
That may suit Eulálio in the short term, but it also means the Giro has arrived at stage 14 with the central question still unresolved. Can Eulálio keep absorbing pressure, or will Vingegaard finally turn his climbing superiority into pink?
The standings say the race remains close. The route now says it may not stay that way for long.
Giro d’Italia 2026 stage 13 result
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