Key Takeaways: 2025 Giro d'Italia Stage 9

Breaking down how one of the most thrilling and chaotic stages in the recent memory of the Giro d'Italia was won & what it means for the remainder of the race

Against the otherworldly backdrop of the endlessly rolling hills of the stunning Tuscan landscape, Wout van Aert capped off one of the most thrilling and disorienting stages in the modern history of the Giro d’Italia by breaking one of cycling’s most frustrating cold streaks when he surged ahead of UAE’s Isaac del Toro to win Stage 9 in Siena’s iconic Piazza del Campo. After riding clear mid-stage with Van Aert in an elite front group, the 21-year-old Del Toro took the overall race lead, with the pair of heavy pre-race favorites for the overall win, Primož Roglič and Del Toro’s UAE teammate Juan Ayuso, frantically chasing behind after being caught up in a crash on a long section of the region’s white gravel roads. This means that while UAE takes the Maglia Rosa into the race’s second rest day on Monday, they do so with an untested Del Toro and battered Ayuso, setting up a fascinating balancing act for Tuesday’s individual time trial and beyond.

Stage Top Five:
1) Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) +0
2) Isaac Del Toro (UAE Team Emirates XRG) +0
3) Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) +0:58
4) Richard Carapaz (EF Education–EasyPost) +58
5) Simon Yates (Visma- Lease a Bike) – +1:00

GC Top Ten:
1) Isaac Del Toro (UAE Team Emirates XRG) +0
2) Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates XRG) +1:13
3) Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorious) +1:30
4) Richard Carapaz (EF Education–EasyPost) +1:40
5) Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) +1:41
6) Simon Yates (Team Visma–Lease a Bike) +1:42
7) Egan Bernal (INEOS Grenadiers) +1:57
8) Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates XRG) +1:59
9) Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates XRG) +2:01
10) Primož Roglič (Red Bull–BORA–Hansgrohe) +2:25

Stage 9 Race Notebook

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67km-to-go: When the peloton hits the first gravel sector, Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe is keeping Primož Roglič positioned at the front while Wout van Aert jostles for position.

64km: After Mads Pedersen gets to the front and increases the pace, the peloton is quickly shredded. Roglič is already completely isolated from his teammates, while Juan Ayuso has a UAE teammate in Isaac del Toro, and Egan Bernal has five Ineos teammates with him in the group.

51.3km: After one of those Ineos riders crashes in a gravel corner, a group of riders, including Roglič, Ayuso, and Pidcock, are caught up in a crash.

51.2km: Due to a more fortunate crash position, Ayuso is able to get up and back on his bike almost immediately, while Roglič and Pidcock are forced to untangle their bikes and bodies from others. UAE’s Brandon McNulty is the last to get up and appears to be the most injured.

49.8km: Just a few moments later, Del Toro, who has gotten through the melee unscathed, accelerates at the front with three Ineos riders, including Bernal, on his wheel, reeling in the dangling remnants of the early breakaway. It isn’t clear if he knows his teammate is behind and has crashed, but this is the worst possible outcome for Ayuso at this point.

46.1km: With Bernal and his two Ineos teammates (Arensman and Rivera) pulling at the front (while Van Aert sits in the wheels due to his teammate Simon Yates being in the chase group), Roglič suffers a flat tire and is forced to pull over and wait for his team car.

34.1km: Up front, Bernal is pressing the issue, dropping all but his teammate Rivera, Van Aert, and Del Toro. Roglič, now back in the Pidcock chase group, is 1’23 behind the lead and 38 seconds behind the Ayuso group.

32.9km-28km: While Van Aert and Del Toro continue to sit on as Bernal and Rivera set a hard pace, Tom Pidcock drives the pace in the Roglič group, bringing the gap down ten seconds by the top of the climb.

15.8km- 15.3km: With chaos and confusion reigning, Lidl-Trek’s Mathias Vacek leaves the chase group with his teammate Giulio Ciccone and bridges up to the lead group. This causes Del Toro to attack, even as his UAE team chases behind, which drops Bernal and Vacek, while Van Aert hides in his slipstream and holds on for dear life.

14.5km: With his teammate Del Toro just over a minute up the road, Juan Ayuso and his UAE teammate, Adam Yates, rotate at the front of the chase group to keep Roglič distanced. Oddly, Ciccone is being forced to pull hard for his own GC chances while his teammate Vacek works with his GC rival, Bernal, up front as they attempt to reel in the leaders.

500m: On the final steep kick up the Piazza del Campo in Siena, Del Toro, who has led the entire final 15kms, attacks in an attempt to drop Van Aert.

400m: Being familiar with the tricky run-in due to the multiple times he has done this finale at Strade Bianche, Van Aert accelerates over the top of the climb and into the tight alleyway, knowing it is the last viable chance to pass.

100m: Van Aert heads into the final corner in first position and takes it incredibly wide to keep Del Toro from passing.

Finish: Van Aert keeps his speed through the slightly awkward downhill plunge to the finish line to take a massive stage win. Behind, Ciccone beats Carapaz for the last time bonus seconds. Ayuso comes in nine seconds behind them, looking dejected and injured. Roglič, Pidcock, and Gee come in 2’22 behind Van Aert and 75 seconds behind Ayuso.

Three Key Takeaways