Giro D'Italia 2015: Stage 20 Results, Overall Standings and Highlights

Fabio Aru won Stage 20 of the 2015 Giro d'Italia, the final mountain stage before the peloton heads for Milan to finish this year's race. Ryder Hesjedal and Rigoberto Uran completed the podium, while Alberto Contador survived a meltdown on Finestre to salvage his lead in the general classification.

The top favourite will win the 2015 Giro ahead of the Astana duo of Aru and Mikel Landa, barring a major crash during the final stage.

Here are the results from Stage 20:

Rider (Nationality) Team	Time
1. Fabio Aru (Ita) Astana Pro Team	5:12:25
2. Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Cannondale-Garmin Pro Cycling Team	+18
3. Rigoberto Uran (Col) Etixx - Quick-Step	+24
4. Mikel Landa Meana (Spa) Astana Pro Team	Same Time
5. Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Team LottoNL-Jumbo	+34
6. Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo	+2:25
7. Tanel Kangert (Est) Astana Pro Team	+2:28
8. Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Androni Giocattoli	Same Time
9. Leopold Konig (Cze) Team Sky	Same Time
10. Diego Rosa (Ita) Astana Pro Team	Same Time

Giro organisers saved the best for last, as Saturday's stage led the peloton over two of the most feared climbs in all of Italy: Finestre and Sestriere. As shared by Team Sky, the profile of Stage 20 looked daunting:

Contador had a comfortable lead in the general classification, but with Aru and Landa completing the top three, Astana had two riders capable of making life miserable on the Spaniard in the high mountains.

Ilnur Zakarin was given the early lead by the peloton, who gladly waited until the foot of Finestre before launching their attacks. And unsurprisingly, it was Landa who once again opened up the race with a bang.

Climbing expert Michael Rasmussen has been very impressed with the Spaniard:

Landa closed the gap with Zakarin fairly quickly, while Hesjedal and Steven Kruijswijk countered in the background. Contador could not, and when Aru also upped the tempo, the maglia rosa suddenly found himself all alone.

Cycling Central couldn't believe it:

The top favourite for this year's Giro simply couldn't get his legs moving, and with no Tinkoff-Saxo riders around to help, he started losing tons of time on the leading group. By the time he made it to the summit of Finestre, he was already over 90 seconds behind, and cycling journalist Daniel Friebe was worried:

Landa and Aru joined forces during the descent in an attempt to launch an unexpected attack on the maglia rosa, while Contador found Tanel Kangert, who refused to leave his wheel.

Aru and Landa were aided by Uran at the front, but Contador recovered from his setback on Finestre in time and made sure the Astana duo wouldn't come anywhere near him in the standings.

Daniel Dal Zennaro/Associated Press

At the front, the focus shifted to winning the stage, and a late attack from Aru ensured the Italian would lock up second place in the general classification with another win.

Contador finished well over two minutes behind the winner but pumped his fist crossing the finish line regardless, as he knew he can no longer lose the Giro, barring major mechanical issues or a crash.

Here's a look at the general classification with one stage left, courtesy of Sky Sports:

Sunday's final stage will be a short hop from Turin to Milan, and given the flat profile, it has bunch sprint written all over it. The peloton will make it virtually impossible for anyone to launch an escape, and with the exception of some waving and drinking champagne in front of the camera, you won't see any of the top favourites all day.

Contador will win the 2015 Giro d'Italia, but his bid to become the first rider to do the Giro-Tour de France double since Marco Pantani did it in 1998 took a major hit. The Spaniard suffered a shoulder injury during the first week and had to go very, very deep to hold off Landa and Aru in the standings.

As he told Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Gregor Brown of Cycling Weekly) before the Giro even started, he always knew this would be a difficult feat:

"

At the end of my career, I want to be remembered as someone who did something truly special. Who made history. At this point, the possibility for me is to win the Giro d’Italia and the Tour de France in the same year is not only difficult, it’s risky.

"

With the likes of Vincenzo Nibali, Chris Froome and Nairo Quintana arriving at the start of the 2015 Tour with fresh legs, Contador will have to be at his very best to emulate Pantani. And after such a gruesome Giro d'Italia, that will be easier said than done.  

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