PREVIEW | Giro d'Italia 2023 stage 9 - Crucial time-trial to see Evenepoel and Roglic go head-to-head once again
Cycling
Preview. The fight for the overall classification has truly begun finally this afternoon, and everything is open for stage 9. The Giro d'Italia sees it's second individual time-trial in what will perhaps be the most important day of the first week.
2023 will be an edition favourable to the time-trialists. The 9th stage of the Giro d'Italia is certain to be a time-trial with a distance of 35 kilometers. Savignano sul Rubicone and Cesena host the start and finish of what is an important day for the overall classification.
Estimated start and finish times for Giro d'Italia stage 9: 13:10-17:10CET
Stage 9 (ITT): Savignano sul Rubicone - Cesena, 35Km
There is a hilly, a mountainous and a flat time-trial. This one is the latter, but also the longest. The roads will be completely flat from start to finish however not perfectly straightforward. There are a few tricky corners throughout the course however as long as riders take precaution crashes shouldn't be a risk.
It's a day to make time, the specialists can easily take something like two minutes on the more modest competition. It's perhaps the most important day of the opening week, where gaps will further be cemented.
The Weather
Map Giro d'Italia 2023 stage 9
A small northern breeze, however it's the rain that can make a difference in the day. Take it with a grain of salt, the forecast pointed towards rain today but that didn't come. Here it'd be less important as it's not a technical time-trial, but if the weather changes during the afternoon (likely it becomes less likely to rain later) the few turns should see a few seconds gained/lost which could be crucial.
The Favourites
Remco Evenepoel - He has powered through the opening day like never before. On first glance the Belgian is clearly the man to beat, with Filippo Ganna out of the race and with him showing tremendous speed even on the pan-flat roads. Aero matters much and he's got it, he'll need to take as much time as possible but as seen today he doesn't look at his very best level - likely as a result of the crashes.
Primoz Roglic - There will be motivation from Roglic after having dropped Evenepoel today. The gap to Evenepoel came down from 44 to 30 seconds, not a huge hit but a psychological blow above all. He now knows he can win time uphill, and indicators point towards his form being on the up as well. I think we'll see a much stronger Roglic in this time-trial, but that doesn't mean he won't lose time.
Stefan Küng - With Ganna out Küng becomes the main time-trialist (pure, you could say) on the start but I admit he will likely still struggle. On his best day he can defeat this competition but it will not be easy. The Swiss had the opportunity but he has not saved himself today, in fact it seemed like he was doing quite a lot of effort in the end which I couldn't comprehend. After a modest opening time-trial he needs to step up his level if he wants a win out of this race.
The most important plot of the day is the GC fight. If the opening time-trial has shown us anything is that some of the podium contenders are also rolling at an impressive speed. Both João Almeida and Tao Geoghegan Hart impressed and they should be among the best once again if they carry the same speed. This time around Geraint Thomas is likely to join them, having improved his form throughout the week and seemingly being back to his best level.
The likes of Jay Vine and Lennard Kämna could also be there within the Top10, even more on a good day. Andreas Leknessund is unlikely to keep his pink jersey but he is strong against the clock and will likely remain inside the podium. Others will likely have their mind only in limiting the losses, which is understandable seeing the quality of this field against the clock.
Out of those who had the freedom to save their legs a bit over the last few days and could perhaps benefit from it you would see Mads Pedersen, Michael Hepburn, Bruno Armirail, Will Barta, Edoardo Affini, Josef Cerny... The likes of today's winner Ben Healy himself or maybe Rohan Dennis could also have a go.
Prediction Giro d'Italia 2023 stage 9:
*** Remco Evenepoel
** Primoz Roglic, Stefan Küng, Geraint Thomas
* João Almeida, Tao Geoghegan Hart, Jay Vine, Lennard Kämna, Mads Pedersen, Edoardo Affini, Josef Cerny
** Primoz Roglic, Stefan Küng, Geraint Thomas
* João Almeida, Tao Geoghegan Hart, Jay Vine, Lennard Kämna, Mads Pedersen, Edoardo Affini, Josef Cerny
Pick: Remco Evenepoel
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
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Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
- Me too!!!!!Occam10-11-2026
- they can sign any 100 of top riders today but Pogi will win over Remco any time at the TDF unless something goes wrongabstractengineer10-11-2026
- the time for a GC rider to retire is when they cannot win stages, or have a significant level drop like from winner/podium into top 5/10 consistently. Roglic is still competitive and Froome raced even though he became pack fodder.abstractengineer10-11-2026
- He should be in a different team. It was detrimental. For them it does not matter if he does not develop. He should have gone to a team where they need him to succeed.abstractengineer10-11-2026
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Take a deep breath. 🗺 Here is the Route of the Giro d’Italia 2023. . Fai un respiro profondo. 🗺 Ecco il Percorso del Giro d’Italia 2023. #Giro @ENIT_italia
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