Kaden Groves has emerged victorious after a brutal Stage 6 at the Giro d'Italia.
The Alpecin–Deceuninck rider took out the sprint finish in Naples to secure his ninth Grand Tour victory and first win of the season.
Crucially, he avoided a sickening mass crash that occurred with 70 kilometres left of the stage.
Fellow Australian Jai Hindley, however, was not so lucky.
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The 2022 Giro winner was caught up in the calamity and was forced to retire from the race with a concussion.
Current leader Mads Pedersen also went down on the wet roads and finished the stage almost 10 minutes behind Groves.
Despite this, he will continue wearing the maglia rosa, with organisers declaring that no points, time gaps or bonuses would be awarded following the crash in the peloton.
🎬 A stage like no other. Normal until it wasn’t. In Napoli, the sprinters reigned supreme, but they very nearly didn’t.
— Giro d'Italia (@giroditalia) May 15, 2025
🎥 Highlights of Stage 6️⃣
🎬 Non una tappa come le altre. Sul lungomare di Napoli se la giocano i velocisti ma per poco la fuga non ha fatto il colpaccio.… pic.twitter.com/QV7U2cjrfC
The chaos resulted in a much-reduced sprint finish.
Groves, 26, beat out Milan Fretin and Paul Magnier to cross the line first.
It nearly ended in disaster moments before, though, with a protester stepping out in front of the peloton holding a banner as teams began forming their lead-out trains.
Despite all the commotion, the Gympie-born talent kept his cool and powered past his rivals.
He remains at 104th in the general classification standings heading into Stage 7.
Riders will race from Tagliacozzo to Marsia in the first mountain finish of the tour.