With three first-category climbs, the sixteenth stage from Salo to Aprica promised to be a tough one. Pascal Eenkhoorn was in for a day in the breakaway and jumped when a small group broke away. However, a strong group of sixteen, including Bouwman, caught the six shortly afterward.

The winner of stage seven successfully went for a good result in the mountain classification. Although he came second on the Goletto di Cadino, he took maximum points on the Mortirolo. After the Mortirolo, Bouwman dropped the six remaining leaders and finished at over sixteen minutes from winner Jan Hirt.

"I did well today, but I know I will have to attack again in the coming days to retain the jersey", Bouwman said. "It will be a nice battle with Ciccone, who is now my biggest contender."

Bouwman was disappointed that Ciccone surprised him on the first climb. The Italian took 40 points on the Goletto di Cadino. "I made a mistake by not sitting in his wheel. I don't know if I would have beaten him otherwise, but I would certainly have come closer."

On the Mortirolo, Bouwman had nothing to fear from Ciccone anymore. "In the valley, we rode away with seven riders, which put me in a perfect situation. I took maximum points on the top of the Mortirolo, so that was perfect. Of course it's not the same as winning a stage, but hearing all those people screaming your name on such a mythical climb was a beautiful experience."

The fact that Bouwman let go his breakaway companions on the final climb was agreed upon in advance with sports directors Addy Engels and Marc Reef. "We said to each other: if I really feel I can win, I will push to the finish; otherwise, I will take it easy. I felt I didn't have the punch anymore on the steeper sections, so I decided to let the breakaway group go."