The 2025 Giro d’Italia continued Wednesday with stage 17 – a condensed 155-kilometer stage from San Michele all Adige to Bormio in the most northern part of Italy. The stage would be contested in the Alps and would feature one Category 1 climb, one Category 2 climb, and one Category 3 climb, but would conclude with a short downhill section to the finish line in Bormio. 

The Passo del Tonale (Category Two) climb will be exhausting, and no one will be able to hide on the climb. The hairpin turns on the descent from intense Passo del Mortirolo (Category One) will be dangerous and will have to be conquered at high speeds. If the weather conditions prove rainy, it will make the downhill stretches even more dangerous.

Look for some general classification favorites to impress on the mountain roads of stage 17 of the Giro d’Italia, while other GC favorites falter and breakaway hopefuls engage in quests for a memorable stage victory as the Giro enters its final phase before it concludes in Rome on Sunday. Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates), Simon Yates (Team Visma-Lease a Bike), and Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) were in the top 3 of the general classification before the stage.

Though the first seventy kilometers of the stage would be uphill on climbs and false-flats, stage 17 of the Giro got off to a fast start as many teams and riders proved eager to engage in breakaway efforts – some with high hopes of securing a stage victory, others in tactical fashion to support the interests of their team captains. The weather conditions were fortunately sunny, and the temperatures were about 24 degrees Celsius.

The Trento region has been known for its strategic military strongholds and the Italian military even used to feature cycling military platoons in historic times. Fortunately, today’s battles of the Giro would be contested with no other weapons than bikes and water bottles though. 

While attacks were continuously being launched at the front of the peloton, GC favorite and UAE Team Emirates captain Juan Ayuso appeared to have been dropped as the peloton crossed the bridge near Predaia. 

The riders passed the Lago di Santa Giustina, which is formed by a dam used in hydroelectric power generation and forms a resource for fishing and ecological climate preservation. Ayuso appeared to be one of the riders needing to recharge his batteries to be able to generate power for his pedals - and perhaps he would find the apples grown in the nearby Val du Non orchards of use. Alternatively, with all the internal battles going on within UAE Team Emirates, Ayuso might exit the race, retract and fortify himself in the Catello di Cles, which overlooked the lake and had been erected in the medieval times of the 13th century for local nobles and the Bishops of Trento.

The Lidl-Trek team sent riders to the front of the peloton with 135 kilometers left and prepared team captain Mads Pedersen for the first intermediate sprint of the stage in Cles. The Dane claimed the maximum points and extended his lead in the points classification.

The peloton was stretched out when 123 kilometers remained. Breakaway attempts were still being launched, and the peloton was splitting into multiple parts. GC leader Isaac del Toro was not in the first group, so he had to make the leap and spend valuable energy.

One hundred kilometers remained of the stage and a large group of attackers had finally managed to establish, what appeared to be, a more viable breakaway. 

The group had fought its way to a lead of more than three minutes and featured approximately forty riders, including Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates), Nico Denz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Daniel Martinez (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Pello Bilbao (Bahrain-Victorious), Andrea Vendrame (Decathlon-AG2R), Dries de Bondt (Decathlon-AG2R), Georg Steinhauser (EF Education-EasyPost), Louis Meintjes (Intermarche-Wanty), Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek), Lorenzo Milesi (Movistar), Mattia Cattaneo (Soudal-QuickStep), Filippo Zana (Jayco-Alula), Lorenzo Fortunato, and Wilco Kelderman, Steven Kruijswijk, and Dylan van Baarle of Team Visma-Lease a Bike.

The riders entered the Passo del Tonale, which was categorized as a Category Two climb. The exhausting 15.2-kilometer climb had an average gradient of 6.1 percent. The riders in the breakaway group were cooperating well and contributing to the success of the breakaway.

The large breakaway group fractured into multiple smaller groups on the Passo del Tonale climb – some riders even fell back to the main peloton. Meanwhile, the GC favorites in the main peloton were closely monitoring each other on the climb and riders from UAE Team Emirates, EF Education-EasyPost, and Polti-VisitMalta were leading the line. 

Lorenzo Fortunato was the first rider to reach the summit of Passo del Tonale. The Italian rider was followed by Diego Ulissi, Mathias Vacek, Daniel Martinez, and Brandon McNulty. The main peloton was more than three minutes behind the thirty breakaway optimists and the riders entered the dangerous descent, which was dominated by hairpin turns. The riders would have to ride at fast speeds to stay ahead of the chasing peloton.

The riders entered the Passo del Mortirolo climb. The Category One climb was feared by many cyclists because of its extensive 12.7-kilometer length and steep profile with an average gradient of almost eight percent. In the main peloton the Polti-VisitMalta and EF Education-EasyPost teams had riders at the front together with UAE Team Emirates.

A rider from Team Visma-Lease a Bike was leading the eighteen-man breakaway group up the climb closely followed by Lorenzo Fortunato and Mathias Vacek. In the main peloton Ineos-Grenadiers had moved to the front with Egan Bernal. 

Fortunato attacked from the front group with Chris Harper and Romain Bardet when 5.5-kilometers of the Mortirolo climb remained. Daniel Martinez countered and established a small lead. Later, Romain Bardet responded as did Afonso Eulalio and other riders. 

In the main peloton Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe sent a rider to the front. He was closely followed by Richard Carapaz and some of his EF Education-EasyPost teammates. Would the EF Education team captain from Ecuador take the Maglia rosa today?

Richard Carapaz attacked solo from the favorites peloton and had Georg Steinhauser up the road. Meanwhile, Eulalio was the first rider from the breakaway to reach the summit and enter the fast descent alone. 

Carapaz was showing great initiative and power, and no other GC favorite had yet been able to bridge the gap. Del Toro had been dropped by the other favorites on the climb but managed to catch them before the summit – but with Carapaz further up the road.

Carapaz was still ahead of the other GC favorites on the descent with forty kilometers left of the stage. The roads were narrow, and winding and you would crash if you put just one foot wrong. The hairpin turns called for absolute attention. The other GC favorites were gaining time on courageous Carapaz on the downhill stretch.

Teammate Georg Steinhauser waited for Carapaz, and the EF Education duo pressed on on the descent and into the valley while joined by some of the riders from the long breakaway of the day.

Carapaz was caught by the other GC favorites in the valley section, but GC leader del Toro and other favorites had shown clear signs of weakness on the Mortirolo stretch. Perhaps the GC favorites would launch additional attacks on Le Motte, which was the final categorized climb of stage 17.

Great Britain’s Thomas Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team) attacked from the favorites peloton group when 22 kilometers remained. It did not take long before riders from UAE Team Emirates reeled him in.

The eight remaining riders from the long breakaway of the day reached the Le Motte climb with twelve kilometers remaining and a lead of thirty seconds over the favorites group, which was spearheaded by UAE Team Emirates riders in cooperation with Georg Steinhauser of EF Education-EasyPost.

Florian Stork (Tudor Pro Cycling Team) attacked from the front group and Romain Bardet immediately responded. Bardet then left Stork behind. Would the Frenchman win a stage in the final Grand Tour of his impressive career?

Daniel Martinez and Giulio Pellizzari set a fast pace at the front of the GC favorites group. Ten kilometers remained. Einer Rubio launched a solo attack for his Movistar team but proved unable to open much of a viable gap. Nine men remained in the GC favorites group.

Isaac del Toro attacked, and Richard Carapaz responded. Derek Gee and Simon Yates did not react. The duo entered the descent to the finish line and was now chasing Bardet. Six kilometers remained before the finish line would be reached.

Del Toro and Carapaz caught Bardet with 5.5 kilometers remained. Yates, Gee, and other riders were eleven seconds behind at this point.

Carapaz, Bardet, and del Toro fought on and had a lead of eight seconds over the Simon Yates group with two kilometers remaining. Del Toro attacked Bardet and Carapaz and left them behind in the final stretch.

Isaac del Toro crossed the finish line in 03:58:48 as winner of stage 17 of Giro d’Italia 2025 and secured valuable bonus seconds. Richard Carapaz did his utmost to reduce the time difference, but Romain Bardet took advantage of the hard work from the Ecuadorian rider and finished second, while Carapaz hard to settle for third, four seconds after del Toro. 

Isaac del Toro remains general classification leader in the 2025 Giro d’Italia following stage 17. Del Toro is now 41 seconds ahead of Richard Carapaz who advanced to second place. Simon Yates is third, 51 seconds behind the Mexican race leader. Egan Bernal is sixth, Einer Rubio eighth, Adam Yates ninth, while Michael Storer completes the top ten, 07:46 minutes behind del Toro. Brandon McNulty is twelfth, while Thomas Pidcock is thirteenth.

The 2025 Giro d’Italia will continue Thursday with stage 18 – the first of the three Grand Tours of the season will continue in medium mountainous terrain on a short 144-kilometer route from Morbegno to Cesano Maderno.

Stage 18 will feature two Category 3 climbs, and one Category 2 climb, but the last 44 kilometers of the stage will be in somewhat flat terrain. Look for breakaway hopefuls to engage in quests to achieve a memorable stage victory as the Giro approaches its final stages and conclusion on Sunday in Rome.

Stay tuned to Roadcycling.com for complete news and coverage from Giro d’Italia 2025.