Giro d’Italia race organizer RCS Sport invited spectators along the route and cycling fans abroad to an exciting battle on the roads of Italy following yesterday’s second rest day of this year’s Giro. A great smorgasbord of exciting sports action would take place in very scenic surroundings as the route would be surrounded by historic sites and beautiful nature in one of the wealthiest regions of Italy.

Stage 11 of Giro d’Italia 2025 would take the remaining riders in the Giro peloton on a ride from Viareggio to Castelnovo ne Monti. The route was 186-kilometers long and, while flat in the first part, would feature a Category One climb mid-stage, followed by two Category 2 climbs in the stage finale. Viareggio is situated on the Italian west coast next to the Ligure Sea, close to both Lucca and Pisa. Viareggio is known for its spectacular and magnificent carnival and for its tourism, as visitors flock to the city to enjoy its extensive beach areas and other joys of life.

Surrounded by green forests and rich nature, several riders attacked as soon as the race left Viareggio. Many riders had used the second rest day to refuel and reload their batteries and were now firing on all engines to join the long breakaway of the day. Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) and Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) were some of the riders who were active at the front.

No viable breakaway had been established when the peloton passed Il Freddana – a stream in the Italian province of Lucca, which springs from the Valfreddana hills and plays an important role in the local ecosystem as it aids the irrigation of the nearby fields and farmlands. 

Swiss rider Yannis Voisard (Tudor Pro Cycling Team) escaped from the peloton in a joint effort with Mattia Cattaaneo of Soudal-QuickStep. But a duo would likely not be able to build a viable lead in today’s stage. Further breakaway attempts were anticipated. 

The cyclists in the Giro raced along Il Serchio, which is the main river in the province of Lucca. The river originates in the Apennines and ends in the Tyrrhenian Sea, while being important for agriculture, navigation, and hydroelectric power generation. 

While the front duo had been reeled in, multiple new attacks were launched from the peloton as the riders approached the first climb of the day – the Alpe San Pellegrino. Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek) and Josef Cerny (Soudal-QuickStep) tried their luck, as did Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain-Victorious) and even 21-year-old pink jersey wearer Isaac del Toro had the pure, yet naïve, courage of youth.

Wout Poels and Wilco Kelderman (Team Visma-Lease a Bike) tried their luck together with Lorenzo Fortunato. Then a large group of almost forty riders broke away from the main peloton. The two breakaway groups later fused. 

The front group had an advantage of more than one minute over the chasing main peloton as the race approached the San Pellegrino in Alpe climb with 106 kilometers remaining. The Category One climb had an average gradient of 8.8 percent over almost fourteen kilometers.

The front group featured riders such as Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious), Georg Steinhauser (EF Education-EasyPost), Joshua Tarling (ineos-Grenadiers), Marco Frigo, Hugo Houle, Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek), Nairo Quintana (Movistar), Filippo Zana, Chris Hamilton (Picnic-PostNL), Davide Piganzoli, Davide Bais, Steven Kruijswijk (Visma-Lease a Bike), and Wout Poels. Mads Pedersen was leading the front group up the climb.

Lorenzo Fortunato courageously attacked on the climb and the leader of the Best Climber Competition left all other riders behind. Meanwhile, while Fortunato maintained an advantage of 01:15 minutes over the chasing main peloton, the other riders from the original breakaway group were 36 seconds behind the Italian stage leader.

Fortunato was getting closer to the summit of the climb in proud solo fashion. Bilbao, Quintana, Luke Plapp, and a few other riders were chasing 44 seconds behind Fortunato. 

Ineos-Grenadiers team captain Egan Bernal attacked solo from the main peloton on the climb. Juan Ayuso countered as did teammate Isaac del Toro of UAE Team Emirates. Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost), and other GC favorites responded. Simon Yates found it difficult to hang on to the GC favorites group. 

Fortunato was still solo when he entered the final kilometer of the climb. Quintana was leading the chase effort 36 seconds behind. 

Fortunato reached the summit first and banked 40 points for the best climber classification. He then took the opportunity to hydrate before the fast descent. The chase group reached the summit almost a minute later, while the reduced main peloton group – featuring the GC favorites – was 01:15 minutes behind the frontman. 

The riders entered the Emilia-Romagna region, which is known for its financial strength, its gastronomical creations, historic sites, and cultural richness. Its capital is Bologna, and the region is one of the most developed regions of Europe. 

Fortunato joined forces with Quintana, Plapp, Bilbao, and Poels on the long and winding downhill stretch. The lead of the front quintet had grown to two minutes and Quintana was likely eying an opportunity for a memorable stage win at this point. Meanwhile, lieutenants from various teams were using the descent to regain contact with their team captains and GC favorites. 

UAE Team Emirates had taken control at the front of the main peloton with seventy kilometers left of stage 11.  

The front quintet had an advantage of 02:15 minutes over the main peloton when 47 kilometers remained. UAE Team Emirates riders were still spearheading the main peloton in support of their GC leader Isaac del Toro.

The front quintet reached the Toano climb, which was a Category 2 climb. The group had a lead of 02:30 minutes at this point in the race.

The breakaway optimists were still joining forces when five hundred meters of the climb remained. Fortunato was attentively monitoring the action as he wanted to secure the most points for the climber classification. Fortunato crossed the summit line first, while being followed by Quintana.

Mads Pedersen moved to the front of the main peloton to set a faster pace and possibly reel in the breakaway. The move by the Lidl-Trek rider quickly caused the advantage of the front group to drop to 02:15 minutes from 02:50 minutes shortly before. The advantage had been further reduced to two minutes with thirty kilometers to the finish line.

Mads Pedersen continued his surprise raid on the breakaway quintet. Their lead had been reduced to just one minute with seventeen kilometers remaining. The Giro riders were approaching the stage finale and the final climb of the stage.

The front riders entered the Pietra di Bismantova climb with a lead of almost half a minute. Ineos-Grenadiers had taken over the lead at the front of the reduced main peloton group.

Wout Poels attacked from the front quintet shortly after the start of the climb but failed to build a gap. The front group was caught when nine kilometers of the stage remained. Roglic apparently wasn’t having a good day in the saddle. 

Richard Carapaz attacked solo and formed a gap. He delivered a very fast acceleration and was showing great power on the climb. GC leader Isaac del Toro counterattacked. Juan Ayuso waited, while Roglic was unable to respond. 

Carapaz pushed all his energy into the pedals on his Cannondale bike and had a lead of eighteen seconds when seven kilometers of the stage remained. He was 2.5 kilometers from the summit of the climb, and it would be downhill from there. 

UAE Team Emirates reassumed control of the chase effort and Carapaz increased his lead to thirty-five seconds. What a brave attack from the Ecuadorian rider who had won the Giro in 2019 and the Olympic race in 2021.

Carapaz reached the summit with an advantage of thirty-one seconds and fought on. When three kilometers remained to the finish line, his lead had been reduced to twenth-five seconds.

Carapaz entered the final kilometer with a lead of eighteen seconds. A race motorcycle almost brought him down when it tried to pass.

Richard Carapaz crossed the finish line in solo fashion as winner of stage 11 of Giro d’Italia 2025 for Team EF-Education-EasyPost. What an amazing stage victory and scalp for the American EF Education-EasyPost team.

GC leader Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates) was the second rider to cross the finish line, while Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) completed the stage podium ahead of Thomas Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team) and Egan Bernal (Ineos-Grenadiers).

Isaac del Toro remains general classification leader following stage 11. UAE Team Emirates teammate Juan Ayuso is second, 31 seconds back, while Antonio Tiberi is third, 01:07 minutes back. Simon Yates is fourth, Primoz Roglic fifth, and Richard Carapaz advanced to sixth following his win in today’s stage that came after a time loss in yesterday’s time trial.

This year’s Giro d’Italia will continue with stage 12 on Thursday. Stage 12 will take the riders from Modena to Viadana. The route will be relatively flat and sprinters and breakaway hopefuls are expected to battle for a stage victory, while the GC favorites recover and recharge before mountain challenges in future stages to come.

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