"You get wheel spin, you lose traction" - Alberto Contador on the particular challenges of the mighty Colle delle Finestre

Alberto Contador has analyzed in Eurosport stage 20 of the Giro d'Italia 2025, the final competitive day of the race and the one that could potentially decide it as Isaac del Toro and Richard Carapaz enter with 43 seconds separating them.

Contador has ridden this climb combination on two occasions, at both the 2011 and 2015 Giro d'Italia editions, both of which at the time of racing, he had won the overall classification. And he has experienced first hand how much you can struggle and even lose time to rivals on the colossal pass.

"It's the last stage, the last chance, the judge will be Finestre. Watch out for the first part of the stage, always a slight climb, which is sure to be very fast and with many riders wanting to filter into the breakaway for their leaders, but of course Finestre will mark the stage."

He makes it clear that Finestre is a very hard, different, particular port, in which many things can happen and in which teammates will be of little use. Not just for it's steepness, but also the presence of the long gravel area which also makes line selection necessary.

"A climb that is characterized by the percentages it has but also for that sterrato in the final part. It has 18.5 km and a 9.2 average gradient and that land that I mention. You stand up, the wheel slips, you lose traction and it's even more complicated to tackle those curves".

Just in case nothing happens in Finestre, he warns that, depending on the wind, Sestrière (second category, 16 km at 4% and where the stage ends) can also be dangerous:

"It doesn't end there, then we have Sestrière, where the stage will end. It's a pass that doesn't have the percentages of Finestre, with a wider road, like a ski resort. But be careful, if the wind goes against you and you're alone without your teammates, you can lose a lot of time. If it's favorable, it's much better";