Giro 2025 Favourites stage 5: For fast men #2

foto: Cor VosIn the past, stage finishes in Matera usually favoured the fast men. That’s likely to be the case again, although the pure sprinters may struggle with the late climbs. The tougher types, on the other hand, will fancy their chances. (Slideshow route/profile)

The route takes in roughly 1,500 vertical metres. The opening phase is undulating, while the middle part is flat. Most of the climbing is packed into the final 30 kilometres. First comes a 2.8-kilometre ramp at 8.6% up to Montescaglioso, followed by a 7.1-kilometre drag at 3.5% to the Tramontano Castle.

The deep finale isn’t exactly tailor-made for pure sprinters either. After the descent from the castle, the road drags uphill for 2.5 kilometres before a short but sharp 700-metre stretch at 7.9% kicks in. The summit of that ramp lies 1.7 kilometres from the finish.

Matera has never really offered a straightforward sprint finish, but that hasn’t stopped the fast men from seizing the day. Back in 2013, John Degenkolb powered to victory here, and in 2020, it was Arnaud Démare’s turn to cash in. That last win came without the climb to the Tramontano Castle in the pre-finale, although the finishing run-in was identical. When Degenkolb triumphed, the run-up was also hilly – with Montescaglioso even closer to the line – but the finale itself was flat.

One way or another, this is a stage where a team like Visma | Lease a Bike could find motivation to control the breakaway and set up one of their fast finishers – Kooij, or Van Aert if need be – for a showdown on Matera’s Via Dante Alighieri. The plan? Turn the screws on the pure sprinters in the pre-finale, then go all-in for the win. Lidl–Trek (Pedersen) and Alpecin–Deceuninck (Groves) will surely be thinking along the same lines…

By the way, the finish town is quite the looker. Built into the side of a ravine high above the Basento River, Matera has served as a backdrop for dozens of films – including No Time to Die, the James Bond flick.