With Baden Cooke sitting out the third week of the Giro and no other team leaders to ride for, La Française des Jeux's Matt Wilson finally had an opportunity - and the legs - to go for a win himself on Stage 15 of the Giro.
At 20 kilometres to go, the 2004 Australian road champion made a pact with his anglo team-mate Brad Wiggins, both agreeing to launch their move with around a lap to go. "But when the time came, I couldn't find him, so I had to go it alone," Wilson wrote on his personal website, mattwilson.com.au.
Unfortunately for the 28 year-old, fate dealt him a cruel blow, as he punctured four kilometres from the finish. But in typically Australian humour, Wilson seems to have a good laugh about it: "Is that the most ridiculous coincidence or what? To be completely honest, I would of been caught a kilometre or so later anyway, but that's not the point."
After an extremely difficult day in the mountains on Stage 14, where the gruppetto he was in finished almost three-quarters of an hour down on stage winner Ivan Parra (Selle Italia Colombia), the friendly Victorian seems to have found his second wind. And coupled with his riding characteristics, he's determined to try again.
Writes Wilson: "So with five more days of racing left, I'm feeling strong and looking forward to possibly two more chances to have a go in the finishes. I know as well as anyone that to pull off a stage like that is a long shot at best, but if you're not a sprinter, climber or time trialist, there is nothing else you can really do here that has a possibility of succeeding."
