The final week of the 2018 Giro d'Italia begins in earnest with the second, and most important, time trial of the race. The 34.2-kilometre test through the painfully scenic Trentino–Alto Adige region in northern Italy will set the scene for the final venture into the mountains. Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) is in the driving seat after a commanding second week in the maglia rosa. As the race leader, he will get the benefit of knowing how all of his rivals have performed as the last man off the ramp at 16:30 local time. Yates did well in the shorter Jerusalem time trial on the opening day, but this is an entirely different kettle of fish.ADVERTISEMENT The top 15 will roll down the ramp at three-minute intervals, beginning with Alexandre Geniez (AG2R La Mondiale) at 15:48, reducing the risk of any of the GC contenders being caught by the rider behind. Within the top 15 are two of the pre-stage favourites in Rohan Dennis (16:00) and Tom Dumoulin (16:27), both of whom will be looking to take time on their rivals. Chris Froome (16:12) struggled in the opening time trial after crashing in the recon, but he has been improving and should feature highly. Maglia nera Giuseppe Fonzi (Wilier Triestina) will kick things off at 13:20 and will be followed a minute later by his teammate Eugert Zhupa. Third man off the ramp Svein Tuft (Mitchelton-Scott) is likely to set the early benchmark.
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