Mayhem at 2000 metres
Stage 17 - Wednesday, May 27: Chieti - Blockhaus, 83km


Route: There's a brief opportunity for riders to get back into the swing of things, post-rest day, as the stage heads to and then along the coast. From there, it's up all the way; to more than 2000m. Ivan Basso took the maglia rosa on this climb in 2006, but that day finished at the Lanciano pass, and that's at 1306m. Today's blast goes right to the summit of the Blockhaus, where the last two kilometres are particularly testing.
Local Hero: We're on Danilo Di Luca's patch here, and it will be mayhem on the Blockhaus if The Killer is in contention; in fact, it will be mayhem anyway.
Procycling's top tip: Looking outside the obvious favourites, Rabobank's Denis Menchov, who has climbing ability and the sprint finish to make a difference, should be in the frame today as the Russian builds his condition for the Tour.
Savio speaks: Blockhaus is another beautiful climb, one day after Monte Petrano and will re-arrange the classification again. It's short but a stage that will send the classification up in flames. It's Di Luca's land; he won the race two years ago and will be out for the kill on Blockhaus.
Stage map
Stage profile
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Latest on Cyclingnews
-
Amazon Prime Day bike deals 2025: Save on bikes, helmets, lights and more
Amazon Prime Day is here, and we've unearthed 60 deals that our readers will love -
'I'm sure the big boys will come out to play' – GC contenders expected to clash on punchy Tour de France stage 4 finish in Rouen
Ineos DS Zak Dempster says rollercoaster final could be 'right on the cusp of what Mathieu van der Poel is capable of' -
Giro d'Italia Women abandons: All of the riders who have left the 2025 race so far
Two riders abandoned after the second stage in Aprica leaving 151 riders remaining in the eight-day race -
'I'm not a bad guy' – Bryan Coquard apolgosies after Jasper Philipsen crash at Tour de France, still hit with fine and yellow card
Frenchman emotional after accidentally taking down green jersey in incident that saw him abandon race