"The day of reckoning" – Italian favourite Domenico Pozzovivo analyses the defining climbs of the 2026 Giro d'Italia

The 2026 Giro d’Italia has been described by Vincenzo Nibali and others as a balanced edition rather than an excessively brutal one. But balance does not mean easy.

Inside the twenty-one stages sits a sequence of climbs that can reshape the race if they are approached with courage and the right tactical support. Few riders are better placed to dissect them than Domenico Pozzovivo, who recently dived into the route and profile of the Giro in conversation with Bici.Pro.

After twenty seasons in the WorldTour and a lifetime of reading gradients with forensic precision, the Italian offers a detailed and unfiltered assessment of where the Giro will break apart.

He identifies four climbs which in his view will define the race. They differ in altitude, length, positioning and tactical complexity, but together they form the spine of the 2026 route.

When asked to name the most decisive ascent of the race, Pozzovivo goes straight to the Dolomites. “In my view the hardest climb, both for the stage and for the general classification, is the Giau” he says. He explains that its steepness, overall elevation gain and altitude place it above every other climb.

The Giau does not sit right before the finish, which might have made it less influential in past eras. But Pozzovivo argues that racing has changed.

“In the past I would have said the Giau is too far from the finish. In today’s cycling I am not so sure” he says. He believes long range attacks are now far more realistic, especially with team support.

He also highlights the tactical trap riders must avoid. Once over the Giau, the road continues to the Falzarego and from that side it is not selective. Anyone who attacks alone risks being caught if the group behind organises. “If the riders behind join forces, the one who attacks could find himself stuck” he warns.

And the Giau does not end at the summit. It will shape the final climb to Piani di Pezze. “Its gradients and its difficulty can influence the final climb of Piani di Pezze” he says, emphasising that the last ascent, while short, is steep enough to magnify the damage done earlier.

Pozzovivo knows Blockhaus well and ranks it second in difficulty, but he believes the stage may not explode as fans expect.

“It remains an extremely demanding climb” he says. This year the climb begins slightly higher, avoiding the longer gentler approach used in the past. Those missing kilometres matter. “The five or six easier kilometres at the bottom are gone, and even though they are not hard they always count” he notes.

Despite this, he believes the stage could become a waiting game. “There are no big climbs before it and the risk, because it is such a long stage, is that the favourites control each other all the way to the finish” he says.

With the summit finish arriving as early as stage seven, Pozzovivo cannot see the overall contenders taking major risks. “I do not expect the big riders to fight for the jersey so early. The breakaway could win” he predicts.

Pozzovivo ranks the summit finish at Carì in Switzerland as the third climb of importance. It comes immediately after the rest day and he believes that timing alone makes it volatile.

“It is an explosive climb that comes after the rest day. It can really shake things up” he says. “Carì will be more decisive because compared with Pila it is much shorter. Pila is almost twenty kilometres, Carì is eight or nine.”

The road itself encourages aggressive racing. “The road is wide and regular in both cases, almost like something from the Tour de France” he says. But the shorter length of Carì means the pace will be higher and mistakes will be punished immediately.

He believes it could create significant gaps. “If they attack early you can make a big difference on gradients like those” he says.

The last climb in Pozzovivo’s ranking is the final major summit finish of the Giro, the double ascent of Piancavallo. For him, everything about this stage screams tension. “This is the day of reckoning” he says.

The double ascent, with a flat section separating them, demands two very different efforts. “You have to attack it directly, especially on the second ascent” he explains.

The first ascent can be raced hard too, but only with support. “Between the first and second climbs there are twenty five kilometres of flat. You need a reference point there” he says.

If the climb is raced aggressively, the gaps could be decisive. “Because it comes at the end of the Giro it can make a big impact if tackled strongly” he says.

Pozzovivo reflects fondly on both the Giau and Blockhaus. “On Blockhaus in 2022 I rode strongly and was satisfied with my performance” he recalls.

The Giau brings even older memories. “In 2012 we traded attacks with Michele Scarponi. The stage finished in Cortina. I went over the top in first place” he says.

Then he adds something unexpected. The toughest climb in pure numbers may not be any of the four headline ascents. “In terms of numbers the hardest climb of this Giro is Montagna Grande di Viggiano” he says.

Pozzovivo’s analysis is detailed and precise. He ranks the decisive climbs as Giau, Blockhaus, Carì and Piancavallo, with Montagna Grande di Viggiano as an extra warning sign. Together they mark the moments where the Giro can fracture, where fatigue can overwhelm planning and where the strongest climbers can finally separate themselves.

If his reading is correct, the maglia rosa will not be decided by steady endurance but by timing, aggression and the courage to attack on the day of reckoning.