Giro d'Italia, German Denz wins in Cesano Maderno. Thousands celebrate along the city circuit
Cesano Maderno (Monza Brianza) – German Nico Denz of the Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe team was the first to cross the finish line in Cesano Maderno , the arrival site of the 18th stage of the 2025 Giro d'Italia , with his arms raised.
The 31-year-old domestique of Primož Roglič, the strong Slovenian cyclist who withdrew from the Giro d'Italia due to a fall on the eve of the two Lombard stages, broke away 16 kilometres from the finish line and reached the finish line alone , shaving more than a minute off the chasing group that saw the Italian Mirco Maestri (Team Polti VisitMalta) and the Belgian Edward Planckaert (Alpecin-Deceuninck) finish second and third respectively in the sprint.
It was the first time that Cesano Maderno, in the province of Monza Brianza, hosted the arrival of a stage of the Giro. In 1979 it had instead been the starting point of the final time trial that led to Milan, with a young Beppe Saronni in the pink jersey. The same thing happened in 2008 , the final time trial from Cesano Maderno to Milan, won by Marco Pinotti while the general classification was won by the Spanish champion Alberto Contador.
Today, many citizens, cycling enthusiasts and simply curious , poured out onto the streets of Cesano Maderno , where not a simple arrival was planned but a 13-kilometer city circuit to be tackled twice. A great collective celebration, kissed by the sun, on one of the first truly warm days of this spring that has been cold and rainy so far.
Today's stage took place entirely in Lombardy , the only one of this 108th edition of the Giro d'Italia. The start was in fact from Morbegno, in that Valtellina that was protagonist yesterday with the arrival in Bormio of the mountain stage that started from San Michele all'Adige, then the group reached the province of Lecco , skirting the towns of the upper lake to head towards the Lecco Brianza and from there to the province of Monza.
Tomorrow the pink race will have already left the region, to face the 19th stage starting from Biella and arriving in Champoluc . And it will not return to Lombardy this year, because the conclusion is scheduled for Rome and not Milan, the traditional arrival point of the last stage.
Il Giorno
