Davide Ballerini pulled off a stunning stage six victory at the Giro d'Italia on Thursday, weaving through a chaotic crash on the final cobbled sector in Naples to claim the win. The 31-year-old Italian, formerly of Mark Cavendish's XDS-Astana team, kept his cool as rain slickened the streets and disaster struck on a tight right-hand corner.

The incident unfolded just as the peloton prepared for a bunch sprint, with four riders hitting the deck in what cycling fans have come to call the "domino effect"—bikes sliding out from under riders without contact, likely from panic braking. Dutch sprinter Dylan Groenwegen and teammate Elmar Reinders went down first, followed by Venezuela's Orluis Aular and Norway's Tobias Lund Andresen. The pile-up took out top contenders like France's Paul Magnier and Italy's Jonathan Milan, leaving the finish line wide open.

Ballerini, sensing his moment, slipped through the tangle of bikes and bodies on the inside line, powering up the hill to hold off Belgium's Jasper Stuyven of Soudal-Quick Step. Stuyven's teammate Magnier recovered to take third, still wearing the ciclamino points jersey. British sprinters Ben Turner (Netcompany Ineos Cycling) and Ethan Vernon (NSN Cycling) finished fifth and 19th respectively after getting caught in the melee.

Portugal's Afonso Eulalio of Bahrain-Victorious held onto the overall leader's pink jersey, thanks to the rule protecting riders' times within five kilometers of the finish. But all eyes are on Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard, the two-time Tour de France winner, who sits six minutes and 22 seconds back. With Friday's climbing stage ahead, the Visma-Lease a Bike star is expected to start clawing back time as the race heads toward its Rome finale on May 31.