Mads Pedersen won’t say it, but we will: take Tadej Pogačar and Mathieu van der Poel out of the frame – two generational talents operating in different stratospheres to the rest of the peloton – and Pedersen is the best cyclist in the world at the moment. 

So far in 2025, Lidl-Trek’s stalwart has raced 22 days, in return he’s picked up five wins, two points jerseys, one GC victory, finished second at the Tour of Flanders, third at Paris-Roubaix, and now twice gone into the lead of the Giro d’Italia, winning his second stage in three days, beating Corbin Strong in a sprint in Vlorë, the Giro’s final host town of its stint in Albania.

And just like how he had to work hard for victory on stage one, passing over a moderately difficult climb 10km from the finish, on stage three, he had to work even harder, ensuring that he stayed with the front group over the much tougher second-category climb of Qafa e Llogarasë. Most riders capable of winning bunch sprints wouldn’t get over it, and Pedersen admitted that “I was in doubt when you looked at the stage before – I thought I would be on the limit”. But like every other obstacle this year, he did manage to overcome it, and then he still had the reserves, speed and power to finish the job off in Vlorë. 

This article was published on Rouleur during the 2025 Giro d’Italia. You can read the full article here.