Basso is now the firm favourite to succeed seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong as the champion at this year’s Grande Boucle.
“The emotions of the birth of my son Santiago on Friday and then winning the Giro will stay with me for the rest of my life,” Basso told reporters after finishing with the peloton in the 21st and final stage of the three-week race.
Spain’s José Enrique Gutierrez finished second overall nine minutes and 18 seconds behind Basso, the second largest margin in 50 years.
“I’ve suffered a lot to get to where I am,” the CSC leader said. “I don’t consider myself a natural champion like some riders.
“I’ve had to work hard to improve in time trials and learn how to become a team leader. Only I know the pain I’ve been through and the sacrifices I’ve made.
Basso, the 2005 Tour de France runner-up, spent the winter preparing for his bid at a historic Giro-Tour double, focusing largely on improving his time-trial skills.
The 28-year-old Italian demonstrated his improvement by finishing second 28 seconds behind his biggest rival for this year’s TDF, Jan Ullrich, in the Giro’s longest time-trial stage.
A new King of the Mountains
But Basso earned the greatest overall victory of his eight-year career with three imposing stage-wins on three climber stages at the most mountainous Giro D’Italia in years.
“In recent years it was always me and Lance together at the end of the big mountain stages,” Basso said, recalling the Tour de France. “Now I’m on my own.”
“I’m not an extra-terrestrial or a ‘cannibal’ as some people have said. I gained time on the pure climbers in the time trial and then they lost time on the climbs simply because they didn’t ride as well as expected.”
Basso was referencing a comment by third-place finisher and two-time Giro winner Gilberto Simoni, who has accused Basso of poor cycling etiquette in pulling away from Simoni in the final three kilometres of the race’s penultimate stage on Saturday.
Simoni has since accused Basso of offering him money in exchange for Saturday’s stage-victory, a charge that Basso squarely denied.
After the race Italian television attempted to convince Simoni to shake Basso’s hand, but he refused.
“Basso deserves his Giro win but he doesn’t exist for me any more,” said Simoni.
Knowing how to race
“I think of the secret of stage racing is to know how to ride well for three weeks without ever going too deep into your reserves,” Basso said after the victory.
“This was a very hard Giro and so it was important to ration your energy and know when and where to gain time. There were seven key stages and I think I rode well on all of them.”
“In the last two years I’ve finished on the Tour de France podium twice and even made Armstrong suffer. I’ve been the same Basso as always, but with a year’s experience and improvement in my legs.
“There were days when I suffered but I manage to hide my pain when I riding and so fortunately my rivals didn’t take advantage.”
Throughout the three weeks of the Tour of Italy the Gallarate-native received strong support from the fans that lined each of the 21 stages.
“I hope people can understand who I am. I’m quite a sensitive person but I’m built like reinforced concrete.
“I think it’s important to be sincere and be honest in life, and I think people who have cheered for me along the roads of the Giro have understood that.”
Double trouble?
Though Basso was clearly the dominant figure at this year’s Tour of Italy, the competition is more difficult at the TDF, which is the sport’s biggest race.
Still, Basso believes he can continue overpowering Tour of Italy form to become the first rider to complete the Tour-Giro double since Marco Pantani did it in 1998.
“I know I’ll have to be as good or even better than I was at the Giro if I want to win the Tour de France but I really believe I can do well in both races,” Basso has said.
After the race Basso said he planned to spend some time relaxing with his family, including his new-born son Santiago. But he added that he would quickly return to the bike to start his preparations for the Tour, which begins July 1 in Strasbourg.
“I can’t celebrate and rest too much because the Tour is not far away,” he said. “This Giro has been hard but leading the race for 15 days has taught me a lot.
“I know the pink jersey is not like the yellow jersey at the Tour de France but now I feel ready to face the pressures of the Tour. I’ve never said I can win the Tour but I’m going to try.”
