Giro d'Italia 2026 stage 11 preview, profiles, favourites & predictions - Will Bahrain let a breakaway win on Eulálio's sixth day in pink?

The 2026 Giro d'Italia will take place from the 8th to the 31st of May. It is the first Grand Tour of the season, and there are 21 stages that will take the riders through many of Italy's iconic cities, the mythical Alps, and many treacherous stages - each one can end the climber's chances of winning. We preview stage 11, which is expected to start and finish at 12:30 and 17:00CET.

The Giro heads into Liguria on stage 11, a coastal stage however on with plenty traps. Some will see an opportunity for a breakaway win; some GC riders may see it as terrain to try and surprise; whilst others will see it as dangerous roads where they have to stay safe and well positioned at all times.

The start takes place in Porcari, and gives way to a 195-kilometer long stage that has a mostly flat first half. But the second is the complete opposite, with three categorized climbs and plenty other that the riders will feel in the legs.

2.6Km at 6.8%; 98Km to go
2Km at 7%; 89Km to go
7.4Km at 4.9%; 79Km to go
9.9Km at 6.2%; 59Km to go
5.7Km at 6.3%; 28Km to go
4.6Km at 6.4%; 12Km to go

It's another day for the breakaway specialists. This is terrain that is hard, but the climbs are not brutal to make a big difference. Climbers can win here; puncheurs can win here; form on the day, fatigue management entering the second half of the Grand Tour, and tactical knowhow can all be key in the fight for the stage win.

It's a classic Giro day where the riders make the race, and the terrain is simply too treacherous to know for sure what outcome to expect. The climbs have different durations and gradients, whilst none takes the spotlight, meaning the winning attack can come anywhere.

For the GC men, it's not easy to create gaps in these climbs, but it's a day where one risks losing a lot. The final ascent with 12 kilometers to go has a Red Bull Kilometer in it, meaning we can see attacks in pursuit of the bonus seconds.

The riders then have an extremely technical descent back into the sea, and the riders tackle an urban finale in Chiavari where there is still an uphill ramp with 4 kilometers to go where we may see more attacks before the flat finale.

This is a day for the breakaway. Put simply, although the start is pan-flat, that finale is not possible to control just for Bahrain - Victorious - who do not need to do it either, to any extreme level. We are now in the second week, with plenty riders having lost time, plenty riders having lost their leaders; and with the pressure now beginning to fall on the shoulders of many.

But in addition to that, the combination of climbs is hard, meaning cutting back gaps will require the leaders themselves to work and chase the breakaway - which will not happen unless there are serious GC men in front. But at the same time, it's not hard to make big difference, and there are no riders with who have uncontrollable pressure to attack such a day.

I believe we will have a very fast start, and then an interesting breakaway battle for the win. Climbing ability will be crucial, but we could have a very large group and a tactical finale. The ascents are not brutal, and so it is possible to anticipate the big attacks - whilst team numbers can prove crucial in this scenario. The flat start also means we can get a very diverse breakaway group, with many rouleurs who may not want or are ordered not to work - like Toon Aerts on stage 9.

But with Bahrain in the lead, it's not too likely to see big GC changes here. By GC order, I believe the following riders stand a chance of winning this stage: Christian Scaroni, Igor Arrieta, Giulio Ciccone, Jefferson Alexander Cepeda, Enric Mas, Wout Poels, Filippo Zana, Einer Rubio, Lorenzo Milesi, Andreas Leknessund, Javier Romo, Jan Christen, Jhonatan Narváez, Alessandro Pinarello and Guillermo Thomas Silva.

Ciccone is the massive outlier, he is actively chasing a win, the climbs suit him well and he is simply just the best climber out of everyone on the list. He has missed a few opportunities already and Lidl-Trek have the men to help him join the front.

Movistar have plenty cards to play, a full top team focused on stage wins; whilst the like of Narváez and Christen for UAE are incredibly dangerous puncheurs who can thrive on these climbs and then also have a very meaningful sprint which can defeat others.

*** Jan Christen, Giulio Ciccone

** Einer Rubio, Christian Scaroni, Igor Arrieta, Jhonatan Narváez

* Jonas Vingegaard, Enric Mas, Wout Poels, Lorenzo Milesi, Andreas Leknessund, Javier Romo, Guillermo Thomas Silva

Pick: Jan Christen.

How: Small group sprint.