Bradley Wiggins predicted that Ineos Grenadiers will look to take control of the Giro d'Italia on stage 9. Egan Bernal is in third place overall, 16 seconds behind Attila Walter's (Groupama FDJ) Maria Rosa. Bernal has been on the offensive in stages 4 and 6 this year. Despite losing teammate and pre-race co-leader Pavel Sivakov to a crash, Bernal has been at the front of the race for over a week since the Giro d'Italia left Turin.

Stage 9 to the summit of Campo Felice is arguably the hardest day of the Giro, not only because of the gravel road to the ski station at the finish, but also because of the five climbs packed into the 158km route.

Wiggins, who won the Tour de France in 2012 in a race sponsored by Team Ineos and Sky, believes the British team will be aggressive and put Bernal in control of the Giro.

"I just don't think they will mess around," Wiggins said on the Bradley Wiggins Show, a Eurosport podcast.

"They're not going to take any chances. They want to put their stamp on this race. They ran week one with Filippo Ganna. I think they will go for it. They will be on the offensive. They all want to put a stamp on tomorrow. It could happen, but I think they want to push Eagan to show the other teams that 'we are here and we are serious.'"

"I know Dave [Brailsford]. It's not their ego or anything. They are safest when they are running at the front of the pack in the peloton. They like that role, given the responsibility they have to run every day. That is ultimately what they train for. That's what the team they are here for."

Adding to Ineos's plans and Wiggins's predictions was sensation Lemko Evenpole (Detunink Quickstep). He has run on par with Bernal's acceleration up to this point and is now 11 seconds behind the Colombian leader.

The 21-year-old Belgian had not raced until the start of the Giro this year and had never raced more than eight days in a row, but Wiggins believes there are many questions about Bernal's fragility due to a lingering back injury stemming from last year's Tour de France.

"I don't think anyone knows, and I don't think he [Evenpoel] knows [if he can win]. He said his leg is dead. He had been out for nine months with a broken pelvis, the longest he had ever raced. One day it could break and he could lose his packet."

"They're both vulnerable in a way; there's an unknown factor with both of them. Could Bernal's back hold up for three weeks? I think Ineos is the strongest team in the mountains. I think Bernal could drop his mark tomorrow (stage 9). Is Evenpoel going to push the limits to win the race, or will he be content to return to the Giro after 9 months and race for a podium finish? ......