Diego Ulissi's determination to forget his poor showing at the World Championships as quickly as possible paid off Sunday in the form of a stunning and record-setting seventh stage win at the Giro d'Italia.

Ulissi, who dominated Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Mikel Honoré (Dečuninck-Quick-Step) in the summit finish in Agrigento, took his seventh Giro victory and, along with Vincenzo Nibali (Trek-Segafredo), now He is now the two riders with the most stage victories in the Giro d'Italia.

Ulissi's victory in the Giro d'Italia marks a rebound from a poor showing in Imola, and the world championships are a frustrating end to a year of surprisingly consistent results for the Italian uphill finisher, with a top-10 finish, an overall win at the Tour de Luxembourg, and two stage wins. It was a frustrating exception to a year of remarkably consistent top-10 finishes, an overall win at the Tour de Luxembourg, and two stage victories.

The UAE Team Emirates racer blamed his non-participation in the Tour de France for his poor performance at the world championships, which has more than 5,000 meters of climbing. However, in Sicily, where there are few hills, Ulissi was able to show a clean pair of heels to famous Tour participants like Sagan.

"I thought the World Championships would have turned out differently, and after it was over I was sick and worried if I would recover before the Giro. But now I'm back where I should be," the 31-year-old told reporters after the second stage. [It was] the most beautiful victory of my seven stage wins in the Giro. I was afraid of Michael Matthews (Team Sunweb) and Sagan, but my teammate Valerio Conti did a great job.

From there to the finish, it was hard but smooth sailing for Ulissi. A final lung-bursting acceleration pulled Sagan several bike lengths ahead of him, with Honoré in third place. Matthews was at the front of the main group, but another five seconds behind.

In addition to setting a post-World Championships record, Ulissi's victory ended a long run of stage wins at the Giro; since his second consecutive win at the 2016 Giro, his best Grand Tour result was in the first week of the Giro d'Italia last year, when Movistar He was third behind Richard Carapas (when Movistar had a strong solo run in Frascati and accelerated late in the race) and second behind Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo), who also won the 2018 Tour de France, Le Puy-en-Velay, two years ago, also solo.

After this victory, Ulissi was asked if he had any message for another Italian UAE Emirates rider, Fabio Aru. Ulissi, however, expressed confidence that the Sardinian rider could be back on form in the near future.

"He is a great man and deserves a certain happiness, and as I have said on other occasions, I am sure that his fatherhood will help him gain a certain perspective as well," Ulissi insisted.

And he cited highlights of his compatriot's long list of accomplishments, including stage wins in all three Grand Tours and an overall victory in the 2015 Vuelta, arguing that Aru has the innate grace and talent to turn things around.

As for Ulissi's own future goals, he is currently the leader in the Giro d'Italia points race and will undoubtedly try to defend it for as long as possible in the short term. [because Liège-Bastogne-Liège took place on the same day as the Giro stage win. Ulissi said he will be aiming for his best finish, 20th in 2013, at La Doyenne ahead of this one.

"In the future I would like to be higher up and see what I can do in Flèche (Wallonne), where I have finished third in the past. But in any case, I'm not unhappy with my seventh Giro d'Italia win," said Ulissi.