The 2025 Italian race started on May 9th, and the current schedule has already passed one-third. It's hard not to marvel at how, excluding the two aliens Pogacar and Vingegaard, the results of the Grand Tour have become so unpredictable. SUPERTEAM takes you through the highlights of these days!
2025 Tour of Italy S1: Trek got off to a good start, Mads PEDERSEN won the first stage with a sprint
Race Course: The race covers 160 kilometers, starting from the coastal city of Durres and heading eastward. It passes through two key climbs, Gracen (13.0km climb, average gradient 5.1%) and Surrel (6.9km climb, average gradient 4.6%). Many mountain attack specialists take the lead in the early stages, leading to a sprint finish in the final destination of Tirana.
After riding 67km on a flat road in a pleasant atmosphere, the breakaway group arrived at the first climbing point, Mount Gracen (13.0km in distance, 5.1% average gradient). They quickly switched to fighting mode. The players of the Politi team launched several attacks, forcing other players to follow up. The players of the Wanti team could not bear the pressure near the last 2km and fell behind first. On the road with a gentle slope 500 meters before the top of the mountain, Cofidis took the lead in launching an attack and passed the top of the mountain first.
Two minutes later, the big group also passed the top of the mountain smoothly. At this time, Team Visma came to the front of the big group to lead the pursuit in order to speed up the pace, and finally recovered all the breakaway riders about 40 kilometers near the finish line.
At this point, the strong Trek team came to the front of the group and launched a "mountain train" attack on Surrel Mountain, which made many flat sprinters and some deputy teams unable to withstand the attack and fall behind.
As the big group made its second appearance at Surrel Mountain, Chicone took the lead, accelerating the pace. Apart from the main team leaders of each squad keeping up, Pedersen's competitors found it increasingly difficult and gradually fell behind. When the Trek team, with about 20 riders forming a group, reached the final 600 meters, Pedersen, supported by two teammates, held the front. Other competitors from other teams, lacking support from their teammates, fortunately followed the Trek team to try to "ride on their coattails."
As they approached the finish line, more than 200 meters away, Pedersen took the lead, and Van Aert (Team Visma-Lease a Bike) and Aurora (Movistar Team) tried to overtake from his left, but Pedersen was in a better position and won the race with half a wheel advantage over Van Aert.
2025 Tour of Italy S2: ITT race, Josh Tarling won by a close margin
This is an ITT race, which is a time trial for individuals. The route map is as follows:
Before the competition, the editor's prediction of the competition is: Josh Tarling, Roglic, Wout van Aert. Let's take a look at the process of the competition:
The match began amid the cheers of the audience in Tirana. The starting order was reversed from the previous race, with Mikel (Team Picnic) leading the pack. The other riders took to the track one minute later. Mikel finished in 18 minutes and 10 seconds, securing the lead on the hot seat, but this time was quickly overtaken by the next rider to finish.
During this period, there were also many challengers, such as UAE-TEAM--Jay Vine. However, at Josh Tarling, the British ITT national champion was broken, and subsequent riders did not pose a threat. Wout van Aert performed poorly, lagging behind Josh Tarling by 39 seconds. Roglic, on the other hand, performed well but unfortunately lost by one second. Josh Tarling also secured this victory.
2025 Tour of Italy S3: Mads PEDERSEN wins the stage again
Race Route: The race covers 160 kilometers, starting from Varona and heading north out of town, then cycling southeast into the inland area. During this period, it involves a gradual uphill section leading to the coast, followed by a northwest coastal road back to Varona. Along the way, it crosses the Erogaraz Mountain (10.4 kilometers with an average gradient of 7%). To ensure their main sprinters do not fall behind, each team provides full support to help them successfully climb the mountain. Immediately after, they face a 14-kilometer downhill section and a 25-kilometer flat stretch before engaging in a sprint battle in Varona.
As the breakaway group and the main pack moved north to return to Varona by the sea, the Trek team began to accelerate in pursuit of the main pack. Soon, they reached the most challenging climb of the race, El Hierro (10.4 km, average gradient 7%). With TEAM-TREK launching a strong "mountain train" attack, many riders with weaker climbing abilities fell behind, including Wout van Aert (TEAM-VISMA), who had been fighting back from both the S1 stage and the Mads PEDERSEN stage.
During this period, four more riders tried to break away from the group and their goal was to fight for the highest points at the top of the climb. In the end, Fotunato managed to win the first place at the top of the climb, and after the race his climbing points surpassed Moniquet to win the blue jersey.
As the Trek team successfully passed the summit with the peloton, the sprinters who could pose a threat to Pedersen had mostly exhausted their energy during the climb. As the peloton caught up with the breakaway riders, they maintained control of the front until just 300 meters before the final sprint.
Mads PEDERSEN took the lead in the final sprint under his teammates' cover. Despite attempts by his rivals, Movistar Team (Orrala) and Israel-Premier Tech (Strong), to outmaneuver him, they lacked effective support from their teammates, resulting in insufficient initial momentum. In the end, Mads PEDERSEN secured victory with a half-wheel advantage, scoring his second goal. After the race, he earned a 10-second bonus for finishing first, earning the yellow jersey for overall time.
2025 Tour of Italy S4: A bright new man, Casper van Uden, wins his first Tour of Italy stage
Race Route: The race covers a distance of 189 kilometers, with two sprint points and one 4-class climb along the way. This presents another opportunity for the sprinters from each team to vie for positions. In the early stages of the race, a few riders will break away to attack, but the peloton is expected to catch them in the final 20-30 kilometers and enter the city of Lece. With two sharp turns in the last kilometer and an effective sprint distance of less than 300 meters, whoever can lead their main rider to the last turn and secure a good sprint position stands a chance of achieving their desired results.
During the race, a crash occurred, affecting many riders. In the later stages of the race, due to the narrow and winding roads in Lecce, each team formed a "sprint train" formation, striving to secure advantageous positions at the front of the peloton to ensure their lead rider had a good sprint position. As the race entered the final 400 meters and the last turn, Team Picnic's deputy took the lead with his main rider at the forefront, while Casper van Uden lived up to his teammates' expectations by leading the pack and winning the race.
2025 Tour of Italy: Mads PEDERSEN wins the title, TEAM-TREK signs a sustainable contract
Race course. The race course is 151 km, passing through two sprint points and one 4th-class climb point. Due to the flat route in the first half, it is expected to form a large breakaway to divide the climbing points and sprint points in the middle of the race.
There are two possible developments in the race: one is to let the breakaway group win and get more teams into the pink jersey race, and the other is to catch them up in the final 20km and fight it out.
Amid the cheers of the Mesa Pica spectators, the race began. After the honor ride, one rider each from Movistar Team, Politi, and Akea teams broke away. The other riders in the peloton saw that their three teammates were aiming to split the intermediate sprint and climb points, so they tacitly allowed the breakaway trio to enjoy their escape.
The breakaway trio happily went more than 100 kilometers and successfully divided the sprint points along the way, while the peloton suffered a crash, with two riders from the Badiani team affected but unhurt.
As the peloton entered the final 32 kilometers of hilly terrain, TEAM-TREK and UAE took turns launching "mountain train" attacks, attempting to pull off some of the riders with weaker climbing abilities. Soon, the peloton caught up with the breakaway riders. On the following two short, steep sections, the teams within the peloton engaged in another tug-of-war, including former stars like Wout van Aert falling behind, which was somewhat poignant.
As the group of about 30 riders entered the final 1 kilometer sprint battle, the Trek team's "sprint formation" led the charge, but Mads PEDERSEN was not among them. Fortunately, Mads PEDERSEN returned to his teammates in the final 600 meters and, under their protection, launched a final assault in the last 200 meters. Despite the efforts of his competitors to close the gap and overtake him, he narrowly lost by a hair's breadth, and Mads PEDERSEN won the race once again.
At the same time, TEAM-TREK signed a sustainable contract, which is also a recognition of Mads PEDERSEN's performance.
2025 Tour of Italy S6: leisure riding mode, Groves hands up and knife down to win the battle
Race Route. This race covers 227 kilometers, making it the longest single-day event since the start of this season. The course includes two sprint points and two mountain stages. In the early stages of the race, a group of strong climbers formed to vie for the Tour of the Mountain King jersey. The general classification teams led the peloton through the first half of the mountain stages and then made a final push on the flat last 100 kilometers to catch up with the breakaway riders. It is expected that all teams will engage in a fierce sprint battle at the finish line.
After the breakaway duo and the main group "neutral" cycled for over 20 kilometers, the race officials decided to resume the competition after evaluating the event. They also announced that this race would only count the stage rankings, not the overall results. Including XDS and TEAM-TREK leading the way to "cheat," only about 40 riders formed a group that broke away from them to chase the breakaway riders and caught up with them near the 2-kilometer mark before the finish line.
But when the duo entered the city of Naples, they were confronted by two "passers-by" carrying signs who broke into the track, leaving the Vanti team with no choice but to comment on social media that "(your behavior) is unbelievable and please respect the safety of our riders."
At this point, the Team Visma–Lease a Bike, which had been leading the peloton with a large group, was left with only Wout van Aert and the sprint leader Kooij. The Alpecin–Deceuninck were at the front, trying to take the lead with their main rider Groves. As the peloton entered the final 1 kilometer, the Alpecin–Deceuninck, still at the front, suddenly launched an attack. The riders behind "slowed down," breaking the line, forcing the other riders to push forward early. This move attracted Van Aert to launch an attack first, and the sprinters from other teams did not dare to be careless, immediately chasing hard and catching up with Van Aert just over 200 meters from the finish line.
At this moment, Moschetti (TEAM-Q36.5) and Kooij (TEAM-VISMA) were at the forefront of the sprint group, neck and neck. Due to Moschetti's illegal blocking, Kooij lost his sprint space and was penalized by the organizers. After the race, Kooij said regretfully, "With 800 meters left, Wout van Aert took the initiative to catch up with the lone attacker. I instinctively retreated to wait for the best sprint opportunity. When I entered the final 300 meters, I saw a good position on my left, but unfortunately, it was blocked by others. It was such a pity!"
Originally at a relatively disadvantageous position, Groves chose to launch the final assault from the right side, which was farther away. With no competitors to interfere, he won the race with a significant advantage. After the race, he said in an interview, "Our team's tactics were very well planned, and my brothers executed them perfectly. When I saw the opponents getting into a chaotic battle in the last few hundred meters, I decided to try a long-distance attack from the other side. I didn't expect it to be so decisive; it was truly a perfect day."
(Photo credit: Organizing Committee of the Tour of Italy)
Superteam wheels New wheelset: S-All Carbon Ultra H2 D30-50 Disc Brake Black Decals
Leave a comment
All comments are moderated before being published.
This site is protected by hCaptcha and the hCaptcha Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.