"For the points jersey we also have to take someone like Remco Evenepoel into account" - Mads Pedersen

Mads Pedersen is perhaps under the radar because of the success of some of his rivals, but is an an extraordinary set of months since the Tour de France last year. The Dane is leading Trek - Segafredo alone at the Giro d'Italia and could very well be riding to a very strong set of results.

“I think every sprinter here is very strong and there will be a lot of opposition. In last year's Vuelta we saw many different sprinters win a stage, I think that will also be the case here," Pedersen said in a press conference ahead of the race. The 27-year old won a stage at the Tour de France last year, and then soared to three wins and the points classification at the Vuelta a Espana.

The Dane has entered 2023 on a high too. He won a stage at both Etoile de Bessèges and Paris-Nice and in the cobbled classics he was perhaps the most consistent rider. He couldn't take a win, but finished in the Top6 of Milano-Sanremo, Gent-Wevelgem, Dwars door Vlaanderen, Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. He has impressed, including a podium in Flanders, and after some rest and training he now rides the Giro d'Italia in search of a win in his third different and consecutive Grand Tour.

Besides, he is rated by some as the man to beat for the points classification, taking into consideration his sprinting and climbing capacity. "For the points jersey we also have to take someone like Remco Evenepoel into account," he says. "He can also win the jersey, because if he wins a lot of stages, he also gets a lot of points. Moreover, there are many time trials where he can earn a lot of points.”

Michael Matthews and Magnus Cort Nielsen should be among his highest competition, as the brutal mountains have seen most of the world's main sprinter miss out on the Giro - with the Tour de Hongrie hosting many of them simultaneously.

“I took a break after Roubaix and then started training again. I don't think I'm going to pay the toll of my spring in the Giro. If I get the bill anywhere, it will be later in the season," Pedersen concluded.