Author: cyclingmole

Roma > Roma 126km It’s the final stage of the race and we’ve got ourselves a sprint in Rome. The lap circuit is very similar to the one used in 2018, when Sam Bennett took the win from Elia Viviani. There’s a lot of wide roads, a few cobbles and a couple of kickers. In...

Tarvisio > Monte Lussari 18.5km ITT Come on, let’s be honest, the Giro has been utter shite. Basically, some riders went home, and we had three TTs. That’s it. Pathetic. The worst grand tour in living memory. Yes, the weather was bad, but fuck me, it’s been horrendous to watch. Enough complaing, time for an...

Longarone > Tre Cime di Lavaredo 183km Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve got a fucking race. With the top 3 separated by just 39 seconds, and Roglič looking better, it’s still a long way till Rome. Okay, this could be due to the negative racing in the opening weeks, but I’m not complaining now. With 5000m...

Oderzo > Zoldo Alto 161km On paper, this isn’t as hard as Tuesday’s stage, but I have a feeling it’s going to be just as hard in real life. The climbs aren’t anywhere near as long as Monte Bondone, but oh my God, one of them is incredibly steep. With Roglič starting to show weakness,...

Pergine Valsugana > Caorle 197km Hands up who wants a sprint? At this point in a grand tour, stages like this can often go the way of the breakaway, mainly due to domestiques being very tired, but also to do with other tactical decisions. With quite a few sprinters left in the race, it’s unlikely...

Sabbio Chiese / Monte Bondone 204km It might have taken 15 stages but we’re eventually going to get some GC action. A final week which is rammed full of mountains, it’s time for the big boys to come out to play. The final 140km of the stage contains 4806m of climbing, that’s huge! Weather Sunny...

Seregno > Bergamo 195km It’s been a long time since Il Lombardia regularly finished in Bergamo, this stage pays homage to that wonderful race. Pogačar won in Bergamo in 2021, that was the first time the race finished in Bergamo since 2016. At just “195km” in length, this stage can’t really be compared to Lombardia,...

Sierre > Cassano Magnago 196km A lot of people were complaining about today’s stage. First, it was shortened due to extreme weather, and then the GC teams decided to ride tempo up the final climb. At times like this some fans can become irrational and want to burn the riders at the stake, they need...

Borgofranco d’Ivrea > Crans-Montana 199km The first proper mountain stage of the race, it’s time to see who’ll be the main challengers for the pink jersey. This race has already seen many GC riders drop out of contention due to injury and crashes, it’s been one hell of a race. The first big mountaintop finish...

Bra > Rivoli 185km It’s stage 12 and the bunch head for Turin. Before the race started, I had this day down as one that Jayco would try to control and set up a Michael Matthews win, but now I’m not so sure. If everyone takes to the start tomorrow, they’ll only be 140 riders,...