The Italian will miss Liège-Bastogne-Liège and the Tour de Romandie as he recovers from the crash, but he remains on track to line up in support of Vincenzo Nibali at the corsa rosa, which gets underway in Bologna on May 11.
Pozzovivo sustained a concussion and multiple abrasions when he crashed 35km from the finish of Flèche Wallonne, and he was taken by ambulance to hospital in Huy, where x-rays confirmed that he had sustained no fractures. He returned to his home in Lugano on Thursday and was due to receive treatment to a wound on his hip on Friday.
"I’m confident for a recovery for the Giro d’Italia," Pozzovivo said in a video statement released by Bahrain-Merida on Thursday. "From tomorrow [Friday] I will start to see a doctor for my injuries, and I think I can be on the bike again in a few days."
Bahrain-Merida team doctor Carlo Guardascione said that the wound to Pozzovivo’s hip was the "worst of the injuries he has" and that he would require three or four days of complete rest. He expressed confidence that the 36-year-old had sufficient time to recover for the Giro.
Pozzovivo signed for Bahrain-Merida last season and led the team at the Giro, placing 5th overall in Rome. On this occasion, he will ride in support of Vincenzo Nibali, who is currently in action at the Tour of the Alps. Nibali will ride Liège-Bastogne-Liège on Sunday. After placing second on stage 4 of the Tour of the Alps on Thursday, he expressed regret that Pozzovivo will not be by his side at La Doyenne.
"It’s a pity Pozzovivo won’t be there," Nibali said, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. "He’ll miss Romandie too but I’m confident that he’ll recover well for the Giro d’Italia."
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