The 2025 Il Lombardia took place on October 11. Il Lombardia is the final Monument race of the season, and the legendary race is also known as the race of the falling leaves, or even the race of the dead leaves. The 2025 edition of the race was contested on a 241-kilometer route from Como to Bergamo in the Lombardy region of Italy. The route took the riders though both mountainous and hilly terrain and featured eight significant climbs, including Madonna del Ghisallo, Roncola, Passo di Ganda, and Colle Aperto.

The race started in the city of Como, situated on the shore of the scenic Lake Como, which is the deepest lake in Italy. The riders in today’s race would also have to dig deep into their energy reserves to compete in today’s race following a long and exhausting professional racing season.

The start list of this year’s Il Lombardia, which was formerly known as Giro di Lombardia, included World Champion Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates). The Slovenian rider was targeting a fifth win in the legendary Classic, which would put him on level with Italian Fausto Coppi, who won the race in 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, and 1954 and tragically lost his life in Tortona at the age of 40 due to a malaria infection.

Beyond Pogacar, other significant contenders for a victory in the 2025 Il Lombardia included Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep), Tom Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team), Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates), Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek), Lenny Martinez (Bahrain-Victorious), Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost), Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost), Egan Bernal (Ineos-Grenadiers-TotalEnergies), and Primoz Roglic of Team Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe.

Lidl-Trek’s Quinn Simmons used the mountain mist to launch an attack very soon after the start of this year’s race. The USA national champion was joined by approximately eleven other riders including Michael Matthews (Jayco-Alula) and Bart Lemmen (Team Visma-Lease a Bike). The Ineos-Grenadiers-TotalEnergies team also showed significant interest in participating in the early breakaway and sent three riders to the front of the race. Other teams joined in, and it was obvious to everyone Il Lombardia is a very prestigious race where a win is of high value to any team or rider.

A fourteen rider breakaway group got formed and included Quinn Simmons, Michael Matthews, Bart Lemmen, Pello Bilbao (Bahrain-Victorious), Thibaut Guernalec (Arkea B & B Hotels), Gal Glivar (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Walter Calzoni (Q36-5 Pro Cycling Team), Louis Vervaeke (Soudal-QuickStep), Asbjorn Hellemose (Jayco-Alula), Bjorn Koerdt (Team Picnic-PostNL), Mattia Bais (Team Polti-VisitMalta), and Victor Langellotti, Lucas Hamilton and Filippo Ganna of Ineos-Grenadiers-TotalEnergies.

While the breakaway group got formed further up the road, a crash occurred in the main peloton with 224 kilometers left. The crash brought down Sepp Kuss (USA, Team Visma-Lease a Bike) and a few other riders, but they fortunately resumed racing shortly later.

Riders from UAE Team Emirates, Decathlon-AG2R and Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe were controlling the pace in the main peloton while the breakaway artists were fighting hard to expand their advantage.

Great Britain’s Tom Pidcock crashed while cornering during the descent from Madonna del Ghisallo, but he appeared unharmed, and the crash took place at low velocity. Il Lombardia was a major goal for Pidcock. Pidcock experienced technical issues with his bike and shoes in the following kilometers and lost contact with the main peloton.

While the breakaway group had increased its advantage to more than two minutes, the main peloton split into two parts on the descent. The first part of the main peloton was now 02:18 minutes behind the breakaway optimists with 178 kilometers remaining, while a second part of the main peloton was now three minutes behind and featured Thymen Arensman (Ineos-Grenadiers-TotalEnergies), Pidcock, Mattias Skjelmose and other significant riders.

Peloton group 1 and 2 joined forces in the following kilometers of the flat stretch. Lidl-Trek’s Toms Skujins moved to the front of the peloton and visibly and angrily complained about the race motorcycle, which was too close to the UAE Team Emirates-headed main peloton and pacing the riders.

The race passed the city of Lecco, which was formerly known for its steel industry. The city flourished during the nineteenth century, where neoclassical palaces and arcades were erected while under Austrian rule.

150 kilometers of the 2025 Il Lombardia race remained, and the front group was now approaching the Roncola climb (7.5 km at 7.4 percent), which was expected to have a notable effect on the racing.

Asbjorn Hellemose was the first rider to get dropped from the attack group on the Roncola climb. The rider from Denmark had delivered strong help for teammate Matthews in the breakaway. Guernalec was the next rider who proved unable to keep up with the fast pace on the climb. In the main peloton, riders from UAE Team Emirates set a monotonous pace on the climb while 02:30 minutes behind the twelve remaining riders in the breakaway group. 135 kilometers remained.

A fast descent followed Roncola and while Guernalec and Hellemose were caught by the chasing peloton, twelve front riders carried on their attack with an advantage of 01:49 minutes and 120 kilometers to the finish line in Bergamo.

The riders now approached the Berbenno climb where they would be exposed to 6.9 kilometers of climbing at an average gradient of 4.9 percent. The speed in the main peloton was intense, which caused a split.

While Lucas Hamilton temporarily lost contact with the breakaway due to a flat tire, Pavel Sivakov led the main peloton onto the climb, and he was setting a proper pace according to instructions from team captain Tadej Pogacar.

Ten riders remained in the breakaway group with 105 kilometers left as Gal Glivar and Victor Langellotti had been dropped. Simmons moved to the front of the breakaway and accelerated on the fast descent that followed the Berbenno climbing challenge.

The riders passed through San Pellegrino Terme, where San Pellegrino sparkling water is manufactured. The town is also known for its spa resort and its Belle Epoque architecture, including the Grand Hotel. Ninety kilometers remained of this year’s Il Lombardia, and the breakaway optimists were now three minutes ahead of the main peloton, which was spearheaded by riders from UAE Team Emirates.

Jai Hindley crashed while cornering, which obviously didn’t increase the chances of success for the Australian rider from Team Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe.

The riders entered Passo della Crocetta. Its twelve-kilometer climbing distance would be challenging for the riders after more than 150 kilometers of intense racing. The climb featured sections of more than eleven percent.

American national champion Quinn Simmons left his breakaway compatriots behind and courageously went solo on Passo della Crocetta. Simmons formed a gap of more than thirty seconds on the climb. A four-man chase group featured Bilbao, Ganna, Vervaeke and Matthews. Langelotti, Calzoni, Koerdt, and Bais were further back, while the main peloton was more than three minutes behind Simmons.

Simmons continued to increase his advantage over the Bilbao-Ganna-Vervaeke-Matthews chase group and had a lead of 01:15 minutes when 67 kilometers remained. The Zambla Alta climb now awaited the American rider, while the main peloton was more than three minutes behind and still spearheaded by Sivakov in support of team captain Pogacar and other teammates.

Ben Healy surprisingly got dropped from the main peloton on the Zambla Alta climb. Despite the intense speed in the main peloton, Simmons continued to increase his time advantage and the American rider was more than two minutes ahead of the chasing quartet and more than three minutes ahead of the peloton when he entered the descent with sixty kilometers to the finish line. 

While the temperature in the finish city of Bergamo was a summerly 22 degrees Celsius, the temperatures on the mountain summits of the race finale was just thirteen degrees Celsius, so it was important for the riders to stay warm on the climbs and not least on the fast downhill stretches.

Fifty kilometers of the race remained and only two categorized climbs were left on today’s racing menu for solo frontman Simmons. Ten kilometers later Simmons was just 02:16 minutes ahead of the main peloton, while the chase group had been caught. Rafal Majka of Poland delivered a final pulling effort for Tadej Pogacar on Passo di Ganda in the final race of Majka’s professional career. Jay Vine later replaced Majka at the front of the main peloton. The reduced main peloton group now included just seven riders, though several riders were playing catch-up a few meters further down the climb.

While Simmons had a lead of 01:21 minutes with 37 kilometers left of the race, the favorites group now featured Pogacar, Isaac del Toro, Jay Vine, Paul Seixas, Remco Evenepoel, and Michael Storer. Bernal, Pidcock, Roglic and Alaphilippe were chasing further back.

Renewed World Champion Tadej Pogacar then attacked from the favorites group, and no other rider appeared able to follow the Slovenian cannibal. Simmons was now just one minute ahead of Pogacar. 

Tadej Pogacar caught Simmons with 34 kilometers to the finish line in Bergamo. US national champion Simmons managed to hang onto the rear wheel of the World Champion for a few meters, before having to surrender.

Simmons was then chasing Pogacar 32 seconds back, while a chase group featuring Seixas, del Toro, Evenepoel and Storer was 01:06 minutes behind. A group featuring Primoz Roglic, Egan Bernal, Tom Pidcock, Mikel Landa, Jay Vine, Julian Alaphilippe, and Cian Uijtdebroeks was more than two minutes behind the race leader.

Seixas and Del Toro proved unable to keep up with the fast pace set by Belgian rider Remco Evenepoel on the climb. Evenepoel left his fellow chasers behind and caught Simmons. Storer was fighting ferociously to regain contact with Evenepoel and Simmons.

Richard Carapaz crashed on a fast downhill stretch and the EF Education-EasyPost rider smashed into a cliff face.

Quinn Simmons and Michael Storer first managed to keep up with Evenepoel, but the American champion had to give in with 28 kilometers left. Tadej Pogacar was still solo in front and had a lead of approximately one minute.

Pogacar was still in the lead with twenty kilometers to the finish line in Bergamo. Remco Evenepoel was now chasing solo on the descent, while Michael Storer was further behind. Del Toro, Simmons, Seixas, Roglic and Alaphilippe were chasing further back, though in separate locations of the route.

Tadej Pogacar again continued to impress all the way to the finish line of the race. Tadej Pogacar crossed the finish line in Bergamo in 05:45:53 as winner of the 2025 Il Lombardia. It was the fifth consecutive race victory in Il Lombardia for World Champion Pogacar, and the Slovenian star now equals Fausto Coppi, who also won five editions of the Lombardia classic.

“Everybody can feel unique, but to win five times in a row is amazing. Every time I start this race it feels like it was made for me,” race winner Tadej Pogacar explained to Roadcycling.com shortly after the finish.

“I have such an amazing team, and I am grateful for the help from my teammates in the race today. Impressive stuff from my teammates today. Seven years in a row I have said this is my best season so far and now I can say the same thing again,” Pogacar added while smiling.

Remco Evenepoel showed his persistent initiative in the race finale and was the next rider to reach the finish line. The Belgian rider has been a consistent and continuous challenger in many races this season and will hopefully continue to impress – the Soudal-QuickStep rider will race for Team Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe from the 2026 season.

Michael Storer also reached the race finish solo and completed the race podium for Tudor Pro Cycling Team.

Quinn Simmons had fought on bravely all the way to the finish line and finished fourth despite his participation in the long breakaway of the race and his solo attacking effort.

Isaac del Toro finished fifth and Great Britain’s Thomas Pidcock finished sixth, while Frenchman Paul Seixas was seventh and Egan Bernal was the eighth rider to finish the race of the falling leaves.

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