Tirreno-Adriatico 2023: favorites, times and how to watch

At the last minute, Jumbo-Visma announces its eight for the race of the two seas, to be held between March 6 and 12, in which Primoz Roglic and Wout Van Aert will make their debut in 2023. A superb squad that will try to face the best of the peloton, in a participation of real talent that will make it very difficult to achieve a place of honor.

Route and favorites of the most exciting Tirreno-Adriatico of the last years

Every season, between Tirreno-Adriatico and Paris-Nice, races that take place in parallel, providing an opportunity for the top riders to fine-tune their form in top-level races and, on the other hand, a way for the classics to get ready for their most important objectives during this month.

Traditionally, Paris-Nice had been the race preferred by the former, while Tirreno-Adriatico, with a much friendlier profile, was preferred by those who had the Milan-San Remo in their minds. A paradigm that has changed over the last decade, with the Italian race offering more selective routes and that has meant that every year, both this race and the French race fight to have the best line-up of riders. In 2023, things are very evenly matched, given the tremendous line-up presented in Tirreno-Adriatico, which has little to envy to that of Paris-Nice.

Tirreno-Adriatico 2023 Route

The organization of the race of the two seas has prepared a program that will surely not leave us indifferent and that, for sure, will allow us to see interesting race situations.

The week begins with an individual time trial in Lido di Camaiore, on the shores of the Tyrrhenian Sea. Just 11 kilometers, absolutely flat and with an out-and-back route along the lungomare without any technical difficulty in which the specialists in the individual fight can get an interesting income and thus begin to define the general classification.

The next two stages, with a practically flat profile, should be a reserve for the sprinters in the race while the race advances towards the heart of Italy until it reaches the Apennine Mountains.

Mountains that will be the stage for the next three days in which the race will be decided, starting with a leg-breaking route in the 4th stage that will be marked by a final circuit to which the cyclists will have to make 4 laps marked by the ascent to the finish of Tortoreto, an interesting climb of four and a half kilometers with the first of them really hard, where the slopes reach 14% of inclination.

The 5th stage also presents us with a mid-mountain route in which the cyclists will have to overcome two scoring passes in addition to the many climbs that the region hides and that are not categorized, on their way to the end of the stage in Sassotetto, a climb in which the general classification should be completely determined thanks to its demanding 14 kilometers of ascent in which the candidates for victory will have to play their chances.

There will still be one last chance, already smelling the Adriatic coast, to change the course of the race with a new stage around Osimo. As in the fourth stage, this day will be marked by climbs on each of the four laps of the final circuit, with the finish line located on the last of them.

The Tirreno-Adriatico will conclude with a final day without any difficulties on the way to the traditional finish in San Benedetto del Tronto, with a completely flat finish and in which the fast men will fight for the victory.

Favorites to win the 2023 Tirreno-Adriatico

With the announcement of its line-up just 3 days before the start of the race, Jumbo-Visma has managed to put the fear in the body of all participants in this 2023 edition of Tirreno-Adriatico and threatens to dominate the race with an iron fist in the same way as it has done in the last races contested.

If a priori everything pointed to the interesting prospect of seeing a Wout Van Aert facing a lap as leader, the tables have turned after Jumbo-Visma unveiled its lineup, in what will be the first race of the season for Primoz Roglic, in principle, fully recovered from the crashes that weighed down his season 2022. A squad completed by Wilco Kelderman, Koen Bowman, Tiejs Benoot, Attila Valter and Dylan Van Baarle.

Enric Mas, who in La Vuelta a Andalucía showed a very different attitude from what we were used to and who tried to put in check, although unsuccessfully, an unbeatable Tadej Pogacar, will try to face this colossal squad. He is surrounded in this Tirreno-Adriatico by Carlos Verona or a versatile Alex Aranburu, who can give a lot of play in the breakaways of the decisive stages. In addition, in Movistar Team's new philosophy, Fernando Gaviria will have three opportunities to shine in the stages with a sprint finish.

With Pogacar racing Paris-Nice, UAE-Team Emirates leaves the leadership of this event in the hands of an indestructible Joao Almeida who will be supported by George Bennett and Adam Yates. The Emirati team does not ignore the fast finishes with the presence of Juan Sebastian Molano, who already proved his good form by winning the 4th stage of the UAE Tour.

Pidcock and Geraint Thomas will be INEOS Grenadiers' assets. Mikel Landa will once again lead Bahrain-Victorious, trying to climb that little step that has prevented him from being at the front at the beginning of the season. For its part, Bora-Hansgrohe also presents a very serious squad with the reigning winner of the Giro d'Italia Jai Hindley as leader, who will be perfectly supported by Vlasov and Lennard Kamna. The last rider to mention among those who will surely occupy the top positions in the general classification is none other than Alexey Lutsenko, who will lead the Astana team.

As we mentioned, the sprinters will also have their chances to shine, something that is becoming less and less common with stage tours that are more and more dominated by trap finishes. In addition to the aforementioned Gaviria and Molano, there is an important cast of fast men, including Mark Cavendish, who will be looking to open his first season with Astana, the Eritrean Biniam Girmay or Fabio Jakobsen, who will be Soudal-QuickStep's main asset, as well as Julian Alaphilippe, who could surprise us.

A participation of such a high level that it eclipses the presence of other top cyclists such as Peter Sagan, who will have his chances to shine in the two classic style stages of the race, as well as Mathieu Van der Poel who, as we all know, is incapable of going unnoticed; or an always fighter Thibaut Pinot who will try to fish in troubled waters.

How to watch Tirreno-Adriatico 2023

As usual, Eurosport is the perfect choice to follow this Tirreno-Adriatico 2023, either through channels 1 and 2 as well as its online platform and the associated GCN+ application.

A full menu of cycling throughout the next week that will begin with the broadcast at around 13:15, with the stage finishes scheduled for around 16h, at which time cycling will continue non-stop with the broadcast of the stage of the day of Paris-Nice.