On the day it was announced he would ride for Lidl-Trek for the rest of his career, Mads Pedersen repaid his employers with his third victory of the Giro d'Italia.
The 29-year-old, decked in pink as the race leader, held off Edoardo Zambanini (Bahrain-Victorious) in a photo finish on stage five in Matera, as Tom Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling) placed third after a valiant sprint.
The race's finale played out on an uphill drag, on winding, lumpy roads leading into the ancient city. After appearing to be dropped in the final kilometres, Pedersen was able to claw back his position on the front, and charged ahead to victory.
"It was incredibly hard, the last 20km," the Dane said afterwards. "I suffered really a lot in this last climb. This was a really, really tough one."
Already a winner on stages one and three, Pedersen hung onto the wheel of his Lidl-Trek team-mate Mathias Vacek in the closing moments of the stage. The former world champion launched his sprint first, and despite a late dash from Zambanini along the barrier, managed to hold on by half a wheel's length.
To win for a third time, Pedersen said, was "truly incredible".
"To win in this jersey as well, it’s insane," he continued. "It’s more than I ever dreamed about. What a Giro we’ve had, what a team I have around me."
The Lidl-Trek rider now leads the general classification by 17 seconds ahead of Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe).
How it happened
Stage five brought a short day in the saddle at the Giro d’Italia – the third shortest road stage of this year’s race – with 151km separating Ceglie Messapica and the cliffside city of Matera.
Moments after the flagdrop, an all-Italian breakaway formed, strong of just three riders – Lorenzo Milesi (Movistar), Giosuè Epis (Arkéa-B&B Hotels) and Davide Bais (Polti VisitMalta).
The trio swept through each of the three intermediate sprints, spending more than two and a half hours together up the road.
Only Milesi and Bais survived onto the slopes of the day’s only categorised climb – the category-four Montescaglioso, 2.9km at 8.4% – inside 30km to go. The duo’s two-minute advantage halved on the ascent's harshest pitch, which also claimed its victims among the sprinters; Olav Kooij (Visma-Lease a Bike) and stage four’s winner, Casper van Uden (Picnic PostNL), were among those shelled out of the bunch.
The escapees’ foray ended with 13km to go. Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates) then ripped into the undulating roads towards Matera, where the finish line was drawn among limestone cave dwellings.
With 4km to go, Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) dropped away from the bunch. The same fate looked certain for Pedersen, too, when Roglič took to the front, clutching the drops, and seemingly poised to strike.
Sensing the danger, Pedersen's team-mate Vacek then seized control of the finale. The Czech rider led out of a sharp bend inside the final kilometre, steering the pink jersey behind him, and releasing him with around 300m to go.
Dragging uphill, Pedersen trudged through the gradient, powering away from his rivals. Less than a wheel's length separated him from Zambanini, in the end, a tight gap that nonetheless guaranteed him another day in pink.
Results
Giro d'Italia 2025, stage five: Ceglie Messapica > Matera (151km)
1. Mads Pedersen (Den) Lidl-Trek, in 3:27:31
2. Edoardo Zambanini (Ita) Bahrain-Victorious
3. Tom Pidcock (GBr) Q36.5 Pro Cycling
4. Orluis Aular (Ven) Movistar
5. Filippo Fiorelli (Ita) VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè
6. Michael Storer (Aus) Tudor Pro Cycling
7. Quentin Pacher (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
8. Brandon Rivera (Col) Ineos Grenadiers
9. Damiano Caruso (Ita) Bahrain-Victorious
10. Isaac del Toro (Mex) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, all at same time
General classification after stage five
1. Mads Pedersen (Den) Lidl-Trek, in 11:44:31
2. Primož Roglič (Slo) Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, +17s
3. Mathias Vacek (Cze) Lidl-Trek, +24s
4. Brandon McNulty (USA) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, +31s
5. Isaac Del Toro (Mex) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, +32s
6. Juan Ayuso (Spa) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, +35s
7. Max Poole (GBr) Picnic PostNL, +43s
8. Antonio Tiberi (Ita) Bahrain-Victorious, +44s
9. Michael Storer (Aus) Tudor Pro Cycling, +46s
10. Guido Pellizzari (Ita) Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, +50s
