Giro d'Italia pink jersey guide and rider ratings: Primoz Roglic, Juan Ayuso, Adam Yates and the other favourites for the maglia rosa

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Five former winners - including the 2023 champion Primoz Roglic - will take to the start of the 108th edition of the Giro d'Italia in Albania. Primoz Roglic leads a strong Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe team that also includes last year's runner-up Dani Martinez and the 2022 champion Jai Hindley. But UAE Team Emirates-XRG are an equally formidable force, spearheaded by Juan Ayuso and Adam Yates.

Giro d'Italia 2025 route and stage-by-stage guide

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In the absence of defending champion Tadej Pogacar, five former winners will still be among the contenders for the pink jersey at the 108th edition of the Giro d'Italia.

The 2023 champion Primoz Roglic will be many people's favourite for glory, but the Slovenian will face stiff opposition from UAE Team Emirates XRG duo Juan Ayuso and Adam Yates, as well as the latter's twin brother Simon, Italians Antonio Tiberi and Giulio Ciccone, and the Frenchman David Gaudu.

Should Roglic falter, then his Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe team-mates Jai Hindley and Dani Martinez will be on hand to push for pink. Or could we see one of the veterans Mikel Landa and Pello Bilbao spring a surprise, or even Britain's Tom Pidcock?

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In the second of our 2025 Giro d'Italia previews, we run through all the main contenders for the general classification before offering some rider ratings and a predicted top 10.

Giro d'Italia 2025: Key stages and battlegrounds in fight for pink jersey

The big favourite: Primoz Roglic

As the Slovenian all-rounder gets older, his qualities as a climber and a time trialist are slowly diminishing in the face of those riders in whose company he used to operate - namely, Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel.

But with none of the Big Three present at the Giro this year, and a route that's both relatively low on climbing and difficult TTs, Roglic will have a gilt-edge chance to add a second Giro triumph to his name.

The 34-year-old spearheads a strong Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe team that also includes Jai Hindley and Dani Martinez. He arrives in Albania off the back of a pared-down spring that has featured just 11 race days. Roglic's last competitive outing was back in late March, when he won two stages on his way to victory in the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya.

If he starts the 108th edition of the Giro as favourite, Roglic will need to find his form and race legs during the opening week and ahead of the big GC showdowns of the third week. A foray into his native Slovenia in Stage 14 will be all the motivation Roglic needs to secure the win that will allow him to head to France in July without any pressure to perform.

Roglic takes race ‘by scruff of the neck’ to claim Stage 4 win - ‘Proper toe-to-toe stuff!

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The other former winners: Jai Hindley, Richard Carapaz, Egan Bernal, Nairo Quintana

Roglic, the 2023 winner, is one of five previous Giro champions present on the start-list. The others include his Australian Red Bull team-mate Jai Hindley (2022), the Colombian duo Egan Bernal (2021) and Nairo Quintana (2014), and Ecuador's Richard Carapaz (2019).

Beyond Roglic, the most likely of the quintet to return to the top step of La Corsa Rosa final podium is the Slovenian's Australian team-mate Hindley - although that would necessitate a DNF or crisis on the part of Roglic.

Hindley seems to have plateaued since his breakthrough GC win three years ago, although top 10s in both the Vuelta and Tour underline his class. This will mark the first time the 29-year-old has returned to the Giro since snaring the maglia rosa in 2021.

Injury and age have caught up with Colombians Bernal and Quintana since their respective triumphs in Italy. Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) has never quite been the same since his terrible training accident two years ago, and the 28-year-old only has 10 race days in his legs this season. He came seventh in Catalunya, where 35-year-old Quintana (Movistar) came 19th to deliver further proof that his days as a GC force are well and truly over.

Former Olympic champion Carapaz, meanwhile, remains capable of good days in the saddle, although the 31-year-old from EF Education-EasyPost has become increasingly inconsistent. Carapaz may have finished fourth in last year's Vuelta, but he hasn't made the podium of a Grand Tour since losing out to Hindley in the 2022 Giro. It's unlikely that will change this May.

The UAE Team Emirates-XRG duo: Juan Ayuso and Adam Yates

In the absence of defending champion Tadej Pogacar, the Slovenian's UAE team have sent two of his mountain lieutenants to battle it out for pink on the roads of Italy this May. On the one side, there's the youth and self-confidence of the 22-year-old Spanish debutant Juan Ayuso, while on the other, we have the experience and grit of Adam Yates.

Ayuso has been in solid form all season, winning Tirreno-Adriatico and finishing second to Roglic in Catalunya - races where Yates played a domestique role for his team-mate.

It remains to be seen if the 32-year-old Briton will be happy to do for Ayuso in the Giro what he so ably does for Pogacar in the Tour. After all, Yates won the Tour of Oman back in February and has finished in the top 10 in his previous four Tours. Yates, who signed a three-year extension to his UAE contract this week, has only ever ridden the Giro once before - in 2017, when he finished ninth.

The outsiders: Simon Yates, Antonio Tiberi, Giulio Ciccone, Dani Martinez, David Gaudu

Also flying the flag for the same family is Adam's twin brother, Simon Yates, who makes his Grand Tour debut for Visma-Lease a Bike. Ninth in Catalunya, Yates will have a free role for Visma in Italy before his focus switches to helping Jonas Vingegaard return to winning ways in the Tour this July.

While team-mate Wout van Aert will be wearing the leader's dossard for Visma, Yates, the 2018 Vuelta champion, has the all-round armoury to be a stronger candidate for pink.

Italian duo Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorious) and Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) come to their home race with mixed form and fitness. Tiberi, the 23-year-old who finished fifth last year, crashed out of the recent Tour of the Alps in Stage 2 although finished third at Tirreno-Adriatico earlier in the spring.

Ciccone was only 13th in Tirreno but won the opening stage of the Tour of the Alps, where he finished fourth overall before coming runner-up in Liege-Bastogne-Liege. Ciccone, 30, has never cracked the top 10 of a Grand Tour and will probably target a stage win over the kind of consistent ride towards a solid GC finish in Rome that his less explosive and expressive countryman is likely to prioritise.

‘He’s able to sit up!’ - Ciccone eases to win on Stage 1 of Tour of the Alps

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A distant runner-up behind Pogacar last year, Dani Martinez (Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe) has only nine race days in the tank although managed a solid seventh in Liege.

Third in the Tour of Oman after an impressive summit victory over Adam Yates on Eastern Mountain, David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) crashed out of Tirreno-Adriatico and only managed 30th in Romandie. Hardly the best preparation for his long-awaited debut in the Giro. Sixth place in last year's Vuelta, however, will have the 28-year-old Frenchman dreaming of a top five in Rome.

The top 10 pushers: Thymen Arensman, Derek Gee, Tom Pidcock

It was his string of fourth-place finishes in the 2023 Giro d'Italia that introduced Derek Gee (Israel-Premier Tech) to the big time and won the immensely likeable Canadian fans all over the world. After a top 10 in last year's Tour de France, the 27-year-old returns to the Giro with unfinished business - and while he’d dearly love to snap up that elusive stage win, Gee’s priority will be a high finish in Rome.

"It was pretty special to be hunting for stages two years ago, but this time I'll have a different and more ambitious goal - thinking of the GC," Gee said this week. "I don't want to put a specific number on what my expectations are, I just want to continue building on what we've already achieved this season. Then, hopefully, in Rome, we can look back and have a good number on the board."

Gee followed up his two-stage overall win in O Gran Camino with fourth in Tirreno and third in the Tour of the Alps. It's a route that suits him well and it will be fascinating to see if he can build on his steady progress these past few years.

Dutchman Thymen Arensman (Ineos Grenadiers) was one day away from victory in the Tour of the Alps, but the 25-year-old did, at least, pick up his first stage win since joining Ineos from DSM in 2023. Sixth in his previous two appearances at the Giro, Arensman will co-lead the British team alongside Egan Bernal with high hopes of a decent finish in Rome.

Arensman's former team-mate Tom Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling) had a solid if unspectacular Ardennes campaign after a promising start at his new Continental team. The Giro, however, is a far cry from the AlUla Tour (where Pidcock took the overall win back in February) and the 25-year-old will go to Albania with an open mind.

Yet to crack the top 10 of a Grand Tour, Pidcock will be better off hunting stages for Q36.5. But given the paucity of high-altitude tests, Pidcock could find himself in touch with the main contenders entering the final week - and that may give him wings.

The dark horse from Australia: Michael Storer

At what point should we start to take Michael Storer (Tudor Pro Cycling) seriously? A career-best 10th overall last year, Storer has since gone from strength to strength, proving himself to be an integral figure in Tudor’s stellar season to date. Fifth in Paris-Nice and then runaway winner in the Tour of the Alps after a thrilling final day solo raid, Storer will arrive in Albania as one of the in-form riders on the start list.

Softly spoken to the point of immensely awkward and borderline scary when interviewed, Storer will prefer to let his legs do the talking. So far, they've been pretty good conversationalists this spring. Keep an eye on the 28-year-old from Perth. He won't win the Giro, but he'll win a stage and may even push for the podium.

'A sensational victory' - Storer wins Stage 7 in style

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The veterans: Mikel Landa, Pello Bilbao, Romain Bardet

None of these riders stands a hope in hell of winning the Giro, but they could still prove themselves to be a factor in the so-called 'hardest race in the world's most beautiful place'.

Mikel Landa (Soudal Quick-Step) finished third in his last Giro appearance in 2022. Indeed, the veteran Spaniard is anything but inconsistent, having finished in the top 10 of all but two of the Grand Tours that he has finished since the 2017 Giro - a run that includes nine top 10 finishes. Fifth in last year's Tour and eighth in the Vuelta shows there's life in the old dog yet - and the 35-year-old will be free to follow his own ambitions in Italy before supporting his team-mate Remco Evenepoel in the Tour this July.

Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) is another consistent 35-year-old Spanish climber who, like Landa, is no stranger to top 10 finishes. He was a DNF at last year's Tour but prior to that, cracked the top 10 of four of his previous five Grand Tours. A double stage winner at the 2019 Giro, Bilbao came fifth in his last appearance in 2022. While Tiberi will be Bahrain's protected rider, Bilbao can still have his say.

Back to pick up an elusive stage win on the Giro to complete his Grand Tour grand slam, Romain Bardet (Team Picnic-PostNL) will hope to sign off in style before his impending retirement. The 34-year-old Frenchman will officially call it a day after the Dauphine - although you get the impression that a strong performance in the Giro may force him to reconsider, given the Tour travels through his home region for the tenth stage to Le Mont-Dore…

Bardet has finished runner-up in stages in all three of his previous appearances in the Giro and will be eager to go one better this May. Well off the pace in the Tour of the Alps, Bardet has the experience and talent to come good when it matters. A stage win and a top 10 is not beyond him.

The long-shots: Einar Rubio, Lorenzo Fortunado, Wout van Aert

Before his expected Giro debut last year, Wout van Aert looked set to lead Visma-Lease a Bike in a Grand Tour - only for that prospect to be dealt a blow by the Belgian's hefty fall in Dwars door Vlaanderen. Instead, Van Aert returned for the Tour before making a Vuelta debut, winning three stages, then crashing out while in green.

It remains to be seen if Van Aert has recovered properly after his litany of falls in 2024. A frustrating spring saw him podium or top five in his last five classics without ever looking likely he’d win. Without a victory in over eight months, the 30-year-old will have a free role in Italy before returning to his domestique duties for Jonas Vingegaard in July. Van Aert should feature heavily in breaks and sprints, but it's his team-mate Simon Yates and not the Belgian who has the pedigree for a GC push.

A stage winner in 2023 - when he memorably picked Thibaut Pinot's pocket at Crans-Montana - Einer Rubio (Movistar) has improved on his GC result in each of his four Giro appearances, finishing a solid seventh last time round. Form is patchy this year, so a continuation of the sequence would be a surprise for the 27-year-old Colombian, especially given the stronger field this time round.

'Fantastic ride!' - Fortunato snatches dramatic win on Stage 2 of Tour de Romandie

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Italy's Lorenzo Fortunato (XDS Astana) is consistently knocking on the door of the top 10 without being granted entry. Twelfth last year for a career best, the 28-year-old picked up a win in the Tour of Romandie, where he came a promising fourth. But the door will probably stay shut once again this May.

Rider ratings in the fight for pink

***** Primoz Roglic
**** Adam Yates, Juan Ayuso
*** Jai Hindley, Simon Yates, David Gaudu, Antonio Tiberi
** Richard Carapaz, Mikel Landa, Thymen Arensman, Giulio Ciccone, Derek Gee, Michael Storer, Dani Martinez
* Pello Bilbao, Tom Pidcock, Romain Bardet, Egan Bernal, Lorenzo Fortunado, Einar Rubio, Wout van Aert

Predicted top 10 for the 2025 Giro d'Italia

1. Roglic, 2. Ayuso, 3. A. Yates, 4. Tiberi, 5. Hindley, 6. S. Yates, 7. Landa, 8. Gee, 9. Storer, 10. Gaudu.

How to watch the Giro d'Italia on TV and live stream

Every stage of the Giro d'Italia will be available on TNT Sports and discovery+.

Each stage will be broadcast in full, accompanied by The Breakaway, a pre- and post-stage show hosted by Orla Chennaoui, featuring expert analysis and guest appearances throughout the three weeks.

Adam Blythe and three-time Tour de France green jersey winner Robbie McEwen will be mainstay pundits throughout, with other guests joining across the three weeks including Steve Cummings. Matt Stephens will be the on-site reporter bringing breaking news, insights and interviews from the peloton.

Jens Voigt (week one), Simon Geschke (week two) and Adam Blythe (week three) will be reporting alongside the peloton from the motorbike, bringing their unique perspective to the fans.

TNT Sports is available across all major TV platforms, offering a line-up of up to four TV channels (TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports 2, TNT Sports 3, TNT Sports 4), and up to six digital or red-button channels (TNT Sports 5 to 10), and TNT Sports Ultimate plus TNT Sports Box Office HD.

You can subscribe to TNT Sports through discovery+, BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media.

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