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Pre-stage favorites Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers), and Tom Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling) were denied the Prosecco after a truly filthy third stage of Tirreno-Adriatico.
Andrea Vendrame (Decathlon-Ag2r La Mondiale) beat back the “bigs” Wednesday in a reduced mass sprint into Calfiorto after six and a half hours of frozen, wet suffering.
“This was a very hard day, first because of the length and the weather but also because of the overall situation,” Vendrame said after the stage.
“It was really cold and rainy, my teammate Johannes [Staune-Mittet] is fighting for GC and crashed,” said Vendrame, who also counts two Giro d’Italia stage wins on his resume.
Strade Bianche star Pidcock hit the line second, with Romain Grégoire (Groupma FDJ) third.
Ganna finished in the group to retain his GC lead, with climber threat Juan Ayuso (UAE Emirates-XRG) still on his shoulder, 22 seconds behind overall.
The race’s signature summit finish on stage 6 on Saturday looms heavy over Ganna’s GC chances.
Van der Poel reels in Ganna’s late raid
Dumping rain and subdued spring temperatures Wednesday made for a parade of neoprene booties, Gabba jackets, and chattering teeth.
If Van der Poel chose Tirreno to tune-up for the northern classics, he got all the weather acclimation he could have wished for.
The conditions made it a true go-slow for around five hours of Wednesday’s sprawling 240km medium-mountain stage.
New outfit for @giuliocicco1 (LTK). Still wet though. #TirrenoAdriatico @CA_Ita pic.twitter.com/f2mrBORPZu
— Tirreno Adriatico (@TirrenAdriatico) March 12, 2025
But the finale of a day touted to shake up the GC was suitably wild.
Ayuso, Ben Healy, and Richard Carapaz (both EF Education EasyPost) all attacked a handful of times on the final climb but couldn’t shake speedsters like Van der Poel and race-leader Ganna.
It was burly Italian stallion Ganna who stirred up the most excitement in a full-throttle finale.
The track pursuit powerhouse attacked solo 3.5km from the line and looked unstoppable until an all-out effort from MVDP brought him back two kilometers later.
Milan-San Remo, be warned – Ganna is gonna get ya.
No MVDP, no Pidcock or no Ganna at the end, but Andrea Vendrame wins at Tirreno.
Surprise winner, but MVDP got closed in a sprint by Healy, Ganna attacked earlier and Pidcock ended 2nd and couldn’t outsprint Vendrame. #TirrenoAdriatico
pic.twitter.com/GHYIP0P7JR
— Lukáš Ronald Lukács (@lucasaganronald) March 12, 2025
On the topic of hulking Italian trackies:
Sprint king and stage 2 winner Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) was sent sprawling when a handful of Lidl-Trek riders slid out on a slick bend in the final hour of racing.
The on-form speed-monster was slow to get back into the saddle but was able to make the finish in a sign of hope for his push to win Milan-San Remo in 10 days’ time.
