What is even more surprising about Leo Hayter's victory at the recent U23 Giro d'Italia than his dominating win is the fact that no one expected it. Not even Hayter himself.

His name was not on the pre-race list of favorites, nor was it on the entry list until 10 days before the start in Gradara. Hayter turned out to be a reserve rider for Axeon Hagens Berman.

"I've had a bit of a bad year in general," Hayter said. "I got COVID twice, the second time knocked out in early March, and I couldn't train properly for a month. After that I struggled to get back into a rhythm and had a couple of small injuries.

"I had a head injury in Liège, then a seven-day head injury in the Tour de Bretagne, and a week later I visited my girlfriend in Italy. Since then I've been getting better and better."

When an opening opened up in the Giro, Hayter felt he had the legs to win a stage, if not the overall. That stage win came unexpectedly and early, true to Hayter's overall nature in the Giro.

"I had no intention of going into the second stage," Hayter said. "There were fast guys going for the sprint, but there was a chance on the climb before that, and the favourites were attacking. I didn't think anything of it."

Hayter crossed the finish line alone, 39 seconds behind the pack, and took the pink jersey.

The following day was a completely different story, and it is no exaggeration to say that it was a stage and ride that will go down in race history.

Stage 3 is a 183km journey through the Italian Alps, with three major climbs and 5,000m of elevation gain, a brutal course for a Grand Tour, let alone a U23 race. Hayter won this race by almost 5 minutes.

Even more astounding was that he started the final slog up the valley about 2 minutes behind Grupama FDJ pocket climber Lenny Martinez.

The stats were extraordinary, but with no live TV coverage, Hayter recalled how things unfolded on the road.

"The neutral zone was 13 km up the mountain, which took 55 minutes. The start was a couple of kilometers before the top, so it was like a blazing uphill, and the downhill was super fast. Before we even started, I knew there was only one way it could get more difficult. It was terrible. There was a creek running through the mountains and people attacking on the downhill, it was crazy.

"Guspesso was the main climb, a really steep climb, 11% for 11km. 11km, 11%, really steep. The start was really difficult. But it didn't seem like it was getting any harder, and there were fewer people left. When Martinez went, I couldn't follow him. In fact, I didn't want to follow. I let him go, and from that moment on I followed Renate van Eotveld.

"Then we went downhill and things got messy again. Romain Gregoire of FDJ, who was with me, got away, so when we entered the valley, me, Renato, and Gregoire were 20 seconds ahead, and Martinez was two minutes ahead. So I thought FDJ was in control and that the race was over and Martinez had won. But we did well and when I caught up to Gregoire, I kicked to drop him, but when I looked behind, Renato was gone too. We both completely stalled out. It was a really unforgiving road up there, with a 3% headwind, so if you took your hands off the pedals, you lost momentum. Then we went on to Martinez and the same thing happened. It wasn't his terrain, but I could see he was getting hit. I kept going and when I turned around he was gone too."

"Then it was a light uphill TT for 25km to the line, and I hit the 4-minute mark and was like, 'What the heck.' I was in disbelief, but I also believed. I remember saying to Axel, 'I can maintain this pace, but I'll work harder when the gap closes.

Incredible considering Hayter still had some extra power left, but he attributed his performance to his strength as well as his experience, being two years older than Martinez and more familiar with refueling and pacing.

In any case, Hayter finished so far ahead that he finished anti-doping and pressing before facing the other riders. He led the Giro by nearly six minutes, and while it is "unreasonable" to think he won, it was his race.

The remaining four stages were more of an exercise in controlling the race and seeing it through than a Leo Hayter show.

"It was really easy, to be honest, because the gaps were so big. 'The other racers were in a battle for second place. Lotto and FDJ had to cover each other's moves. It was a really good structure for us."

On Monday, two days after hoisting the trophy in Pinheiro, Hayter was reluctant to bask in the glory of victory, saying instead that "life moves on" and that he needed to "prove himself" in the next races, including the British national championships, the Tour Alsace, and perhaps the Tour de Lavenir. He said he needed to "prove himself" in the next races, including the British national championships, the Tour of Alsace, and possibly the Tour de Lavenir.

He admits, however, that this will not be to his detriment if he decides to turn pro next year. Hayter, who moved from Team DSM to Axeon over the issue of when he could turn pro, told Cycling News that he will take the step into the pro ranks in January 2023 and that right now it is more important which contract he chooses than finding a World Tour contract.

"For me, next January is the right time to turn pro.

"I haven't found a team yet, but as you can imagine, I just won the Babyzillo, so I have a lot of options and I'm working with my manager to figure it out."

Hayter, the younger brother of Ineos pro rider Ethan, said he still hasn't figured out exactly what kind of rider he will develop into, and revealed that he took a break from the sport last year to rediscover his motivation and try to balance his career and life.

"There are always hard days. 'It was definitely hard when I was struggling with COVID. When things don't go well for a while, you lose confidence in yourself, you lose some sort of meaning.

"But usually when things are going well with the bike, everything else is going well and I'm happy. But when I'm doing well on the bike, everything else is going well and I'm happy."