Giro d’Italia Preview: The yellow jersey is synonymous with the Tour de France, but many races use the ‘Maillot Jaune’ for their overall leader. The Giro d’Italia’s ‘Maglia Rosa’ is unique and sums up the Italian flare for style. This year, it’s hard to see anyone but Tadej Pogačar wearing the pink jersey in Rome at the end of May, but that doesn’t mean the contenders won’t try. Here’s the PEZ list of favourites for the 2024 Giro d’Italia.
*** See the Giro d’Italia ’24 Preview Chat With Chris Horner HERE. ***
*** You can see the PEZ ‘Giro Route Preview’ HERE. ***
No.1 ‘Top Favourite’ – Tadej Pogačar
Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates)
Tadej Pogačar is the top favourite for the Giro’24 winner, much like he has been in most races he starts. None of his main competitors; Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel and Primoz Roglič, will not be at the start of the Giro on Saturday. But it’s a long road to Rome and a lot of things can happen; crashes, injury and even covid. After his two Tour de France wins, the Slovenian (and his team) has decided, with some encouragement from the race organisers, to start the Giro d’Italia for the first time in 2024.
The UAE Team Emirates leader, as we know, is a stunningly talented rider and has everything needed to win a three-week stage race and most other races. He is probably the best climber in the race, there are no other GC men who can compete with Pogačar in the time trials and his all-round ability is unquestionable. His UAE Team Emirates hasn’t brought their best squad to Italy, but Mikkel Bjerg, Felix Großschartner, Domen Novak, Rui Oliveira, Vegard Stake Laengen, Juan Sebastián Molano and Rafal Majka has no weak links. Novak, Großschartner will support Pogačar in the mountains, with Majka being his last right-hand man on the big important climbs. Bjerg, Stake Laengen and Oliveira will be there for the other stages and help as much as they can, but does the Slovenian champion need a super strong team?
Can Geraint Thomas battle Pogačar?
Geraint Thomas (INEOS Grenadiers)
On paper, Geraint Thomas is probably Tadej Pogačar’s biggest challenger. The 37-year-old British rider has been fairly invisible so far this season, but he knows how to prepare himself for his set goals. The 2018 Tour winner can bring himself to fitness through his racing, without appearing in the results. This year the INEOS Grenadiers rider has followed the same pattern, riding his early races to gain endurance and then fly in the Giro d’Italia. Last year his results before the Giro were not notable, but he came very close to the final victory. The Welshman will again be fighting for the overall win, as he did in 2023, but a podium place is more realistic.
It has been a good season so far for Decathlon AG2R – Can Ben O’Connor continue?
Ben O’Connor (Decathlon AG2R)
The 28-year-old Australian climber has had a very good spring: 2nd in the UAE Tour, 5th in Tirreno-Adriatico and 2nd in the Tour of the Alps. A top place in the Giro d’Italia should be within his grasp. Further more, looking at the start-list, a podium place could be more than possible. The leader of the Decathlon AG2R team is not a pure climber, but can hold his own when the road goes up. Against the clock he has shown that he won’t lose too much time on the specialists. He finished fourth in the Tour de France in 2021 and eighth in the Vuelta a España 2022. O’Connor has had bad luck with crashes an illness in the past, but if all goes well we can expect a good Giro from the man from Subiaco. “The Giro is one hundred percent the main goal of the year. The Tour of the Alps was my last preparation race, which I also wanted to win. It was the ideal final test before the Giro, where I already wanted to prove that I was ready. Afterwards you still have to keep improving, of course, but there is nothing better than coming close to winning just before your main goal. That gives confidence, it shows that you are ready,” he said in an interview with WielerFlits this week..
Bardet says he’s in top form
Romain Bardet (dsm-firmenich PostNL)
Romain Bardet has found his best legs just in time for the Italian Grand Tour. He started 2024 with a 3rd place in the Classic Var in February and then had top-20 places in the smaller French races and Strade Bianche, but pulled out of Tirreno-Adriatico. Then in April he took 5th on the final overall of the Tour of the Alps and was never out of the top-10 on any of the five stages. Just to prove a point he was second in Liège-Bastogne-Liège. The Frenchman’s form is obviously going in the right direction and he must hope for good results in Italy. “The Giro will be the big goal for the first part of the season. So far we’ve done what we had to do. We trust that we are doing the right preparation. We are going to try to take some stages, we have a good group to make that happen. But a good final ranking will also be important,” he said after the Tour of the Alps.
Dutch hope – Thymen Arensman
Thymen Arensman (INEOS Grenadiers)
Could Thymen Arensman emulate his Dutch countryman, Tom Dumoulin? The first Dutchman to win the Giro d’Italia in 2017. The 24-year-old had some good results last year in stage races; including 6th in the Giro. This year Arensman took 5th in the Volta ao Algarve and 6th in Tirreno-Adriatico, but his big goal of the season is the Giro. He will have the advantage of everyone looking at his team leader, Geraint Thomas, which will take some of the pressure off. He should have some amount of freedom, but may have to work for the Welshman, if he is in the leading position.
Daniel Felipe Martínez is at the head of a strong BORA-hansgrohe Giro team
Daniel Felipe Martínez (BORA-hansgrohe)
BORA-hansgrohe want’s to win the Tour de France with Primoz Roglič this year, but the German team also has a strong squad for the Italian tour. Daniel Felipe Martínez will be the leader in the Giro d’Italia, before he rides the Tour to help Roglič. Martínez beat Remco Evenepoel twice uphill in the Volta ao Algarve, but then had abandon Tirreno-Adriatico with a knee problem. You could say the 27-year-old climber is inconsistent. Martínez has started nine Grand Tours and only finished in the top-10 once, when he finished 5th in the 2021 Giro behind his teammate Egan Bernal, who he’d been working for.
Could Antonio Tiberi be a Giro surprise
Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorious)
This could be Antonio Tiberi’s opportunity to show what he can do in a three-week stage race. The 22-year-old Italian of Bahrain Victorious has had an excellent season. His 8th place in the tough Tour of Catalonia and 3rd in the Tour of the Alps, just before the Giro, so the form is there. The 2019 junior TT World champion is also a top road man and his climbing abilities have improved in recent seasons. He has ridden the Vuelta a España twice, but this is his first Giro d’Italia. He said “I’m aiming for the top 5,” but can he handle three weeks in a GC position?
Is the young Belgian Cian Uijtdebroeks at the Giro to learn, or there with ambitions
Cian Uijtdebroeks (Visma | Lease a Bike)
With Wout van Aert missing from the Giro, the Belgians will be following the young hope, Cian Uijtdebroeks. What can we expect from the 21-year-old Belgian in his first Giro? Visma | Lease a Bike doesn’t want to put too much pressure on the young rider and don’t talk about his GC ambitions. But knowing how meticulous Uijtdebroeks is, he will looking at the overall. Last year in the Vuelta a España he finished 8th in his first Grand Tour, so he has proven that he can perform over three weeks. Uijtdebroeks’ time trialing could let him down.This year’s Giro doesn’t have a strong field compared to previous editions, this could be perfect for the ‘Young Guns’, like Uijtdebroeks, to cause an upset or two.
Damiano Caruso – Second in the 2021 Giro, can he be up there again?
Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious)
Damiano Caruso is now 36-year-old Italian and has a fine palmarès. He finished 2nd in the 2021 Giro d’Italia behind Egan Bernal and was 4th last year. Caruso, along with Tiberi, could save the season for their Bahrain Victorious team. Both could take top-10 places and even a podium place for Caruso, as he is tough, can climbing and has the ability fight for the victory, even if he isn’t one of the first names that come to mind.
Juan Pedro López won the Tour of the Alps last week
Juan Pedro López (Lidl-Trek)
López won the Tour of the Alps last week, so we have to consider the Lidl-Trek rider for the Giro. López himself said he had “a shit year” in 2023, but as we saw in the Alps, he’s on form again. He defended his leader’s jersey from the efforts of Ben O’Connor, Antonio Tiberi and Romain Bardet, all of who will be in the Giro. López had his breakthrough in the Giro two years ago, when he wore the pink jersey for over a week and finished 10th overall. “I’m in good shape, but first and foremost I want to go for stage wins. If a good classification comes along with it, the better, then I’m happy to take that,” he told WielerFlits at the Tour of the Alps.
Eddie Dunbar – With good luck
The Outsiders
Those are the ‘Top Contenders’, but there are quite a few others who may not win the final overall, but they will be hoping to make their mark in Italy. Eddie Dunbar showed well in last year’s Giro d’Italia with a final 7th place. The Jayco AlUla climber has had a lot of crashes and broken collarbones, but with a bit of Irish luck he could have a very good Giro.
Paret-Peintre brothers can also show the Decathlon AG2R jersey
Decathlon AG2R have had a very good early season and with Ben O’Connor this could continue in Italy, but the French team also has the Paret-Peintre brothers, Aurélien and Valentin, who’s talent has blossomed this season. Hugh Carthy leads EF Education-EasyPost, but it has been a long time since his 9th place in the 2022 Giro. The tall British climber has been concentrating on the Vuelta a España, but he will want to be seen on the mountainous days.
Stage win for Nairo Quintana?
Nairo Quintana is the only previous winner of the Giro d’Italia who will be on the start line on Saturday. The Colombian Movistar rider has said he will be going for stage wins, not the GC and to be honest, his best years are behind him. His preparation for the Italian GT has been sporadic with first covid and then injuries. There maybe flashes of his old self, but his teammate, Einer Rubio, is probably a better bet for the Spanish telephone team.
Florian Lipowitz could surprise as he did in romandie
Also worth a mention is Florian Lipowitz (BORA-hansgrohe), who was stunning in the Tour de Romandie last week. Luke Plapp and Filippo Zana are also there for Jayco AlUla, Michael Storer (Tudor) and Lorenzo Fortunato (Astana Qazaqstan). This will be 41-year-old Domenico Pozzovivo (VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè) last Giro, he will be out to say farewell to his home fans.
Arrivederci Domenico Pozzovivo
The Giro Favourites:
Top: Tadej Pogačar
Possible: Geraint Thomas, Ben O’Connor
Maybe: Romain Bardet, Thymen Arensman, Daniel Felipe Martínez
Outside: Antonio Tiberi, Cian Uijtdebroeks, Damiano Caruso, Juan Pedro López.
* The start-list could change before Saturday’s stage 1. *
Top favourite has to be Tadej Pogačar
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Thanks to ProCyclingStats and WielerFlits for the facts, figures and rider quotes.
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