For the second day in a row, there was an opportunity for the sprinters. From Acqui Terme, the peloton set off for 190 kilometres towards Andora. In the first part of the stage, some climbing had to be done. Apart from the climb of the Capo Mele in the last kilometres, the finale was mostly flat.

In pursuit of a small breakaway, Team Visma | Lease a Bike did its part in the peloton. Among others, Jan Tratnik dictated a high pace during the climb of the Colle del Melogno, halfway through the stage. Some sprinters struggled, but they managed to get back on the descent. Later on, Kooij was attentive at the intermediate sprints, as he again gathered some points for the points classification.

After the breakaway riders were caught in the final kilometres, the Capo Mele - a one-and-a-half kilometre hill - provided some more attack attempts. Among others, Filippo Ganna tried with a late attack, but another bunch sprint was inevitable. Kooij was well led to the front by lead-out Christophe Laporte, but the 22-year-old sprinter eventually had to settle for a spot behind three other riders.

Uijtdebroeks saw his chance to pick up a bonification second along the way. As a result, the wearer of the white jersey climbed to fourth place in the general classification. “I knew there was an extra second to pick up, so I decided to go for it”, the 21-year-old Belgian said afterwards. “In the general classification, there will undoubtedly be bigger differences after the mountain stages. Although you never know if this second will ever come in handy for me. Furthermore, our task was to keep Olav in the best possible position throughout the stage, which worked out well. As a team we rode a strong race.”

Sports director Marc Reef adds: “We started pulling on the long climb of the Colle del Melogno. The breakaway was five minutes ahead of the peloton, but Jan Tratnik did a great job to decrease the gap during the climb. In terms of positioning, we did better than yesterday. Edoardo Affini and Tim van Dijke made sure Olav and Christophe were excellently positioned on the Capo Mele. Olav was launched at the right time by Christophe, but the others proved a bit faster. I could already see several improvements compared to yesterday's stage. On to tomorrow, where another sprint opportunity awaits us.”