Tirreno – Adriatico 2022 – Stage 5

Another hilly one. This time, harder. This is the second most important GC day.

The finale.

Coming from the north, we have a short climb before the circuit. Then onto Salita Capodarco, Via Modanna Ete, Fermo and Salita Capodarco again before an uphill sprint. Let’s look at the climbs.

Salita Ciccolini

Starts with 21 km left. A brutal little kicker. Narrow roads just after a descend. Positioning will get you far.

Via Della Verna Beato

Via Della Verna Beato is the next climb. Steep, very steep. Comes with 10 km left.

Fermo

The third very steep climb.

Salita Ciccolini (again).

This time with 3.3 km left.

And the last effort before the finish.

Weather

Wind from the east, which means a headwind for most of the day. Quite cold again but no rain.

Contenders.

This is a GC day.

Pogacar – do we even need to tell you why?

Evenepoel did quite well today. An uphill finish is not very good for him, he does not have the kick – he has an engine. I hope he attacks as early as possible to try and isolate Pogacar.

Vingegaard had a good ride today. Bloody tired at the end, as the interview shew. He recently did well in a hilly one-day classic in France. I doubt he can win, but he will be up there.

Tao G. Hart is the man for INEOS. They have a good team, but I see no scenario where he wins.

Lopez – is good on steep gradients. I doubt he can win.

Ciccone was active today, which is good to see. It is a good profile for him, I expect him to be up there.

Rota did well in Trofeo Laigueglia. He loves it steep. I think he will sneak in the top-10.

Wellens did not have the best day today. It is a good profile for him. I fear he may start to get a bit exhausted, which is typical for him.

Cosnefroy is another good rider on steep gradients. At the moment, he has not impressed me a lot.

Who will win?

Pogacar.