Giro d’Italia 2026, Stage 5: route, favourites and where to watch it on TV

From Calabria we move into Basilicata for another tricky and far-from-predictable stage. From Praia a Mare to Potenza over 203 km, there is very little flat terrain, with the tough climb of Montagna Grande di Viggiano set to shape the finale. It’s the classic ambush stage, so watch out for long-range attacks. Even the Maglia Rosa won’t be able to sleep easy.

The last time the Giro finished in Potenza, back in 2022, the breakaway made it to the line. On that occasion, it was a Dutch one-two, with Koen Bouwman finishing ahead of Bauke Mollema. Davide Formolo came home 3rd and Tom Dumoulin 4th, in what turned out to be one of the final race days of his career (he would retire in August of the same year). The Maglia Rosa at the time was Spaniard Juanpe López.

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The Route

A highly demanding stage entirely through the inland regions between Calabria and Basilicata.
Right from the start, the road heads uphill into the Pollino National Park, featuring the Prestieri KOM (Category 3, 13 km at 4.6%). The route then follows the Sinni Valley, mostly downhill but with several short rises, particularly through the towns along the way.

After Francavilla in Sinni, the stage moves into the Agri River Valley before reaching Viggiano, where riders will tackle the toughest climb of the Giro so far: Montagna Grande di Viggiano (Category 2, 6.6 km at 9.1%), cresting 48 km from the finish.
The climb leads into the Pierfaone ski area, with rolling roads before the descent into Potenza, where the riders will face a sharp uphill ramp through the city centre (300 metres at 12%) before the eagerly awaited finish

The Favourites

It would take a skilled fortune teller to predict what will happen on the road to Potenza.
Giulio Ciccone (Lidl–Trek) claimed the Maglia Rosa and will not want to give it up easily, so we can expect his team to try to control the race. It won’t be simple, though, because a huge number of riders will be eager to get into the breakaway, and communication with the team car will be crucial to monitor time gaps and understand the intentions of the attackers.

Several interesting riders are already well down in the general classification and could be given some freedom. Think of Christian Scaroni (XDS Astana Team), Igor Arrieta and even Jhonatan Narváez (UAE Team Emirates XRG), Magnus Sheffield (INEOS Grenadiers), and Javier Romo (Movistar Team). But it is still too early to know who is really feeling good and who is willing to build their Giro around breakaways. Nor can we rule out fireworks among the GC contenders on Montagna Grande di Viggiano, tempted by the chance to win the stage and perhaps even snatch the Maglia Rosa from Ciccone.
If that happens, keep an eye on Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull–BORA–hansgrohe), Jan Christen (UAE Team Emirates XRG), Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto) and, of course, Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike).

Predict the winner with our ‘stage winner Predictor’. CLICK HERE, head to the FanZone, and earn one entry into the final prize draw of the Join the FanZone Challenge for every vote you cast (voting is open from 8:00 PM on the day before the stage until 10:00 AM on race day).

Giro d’Italia 2026, Stage 5: Schedule and TV Coverage

Praia a Mare – Potenza, 203 km
Start: 12:15 PM
KM 0: 12:25 PM
LIVE coverage begins: 10:45 AM
Finish: approximately 5:00 PM

TV: As usual, RAI will provide free-to-air coverage of every race day for the Italian audience. The pink television schedule begins with one hour of “Giro Mattina” on Rai Sport, featuring rider presentations and pre-race interviews. This is followed, on the same channel, by “Prima Diretta”, covering the start of the stage through to 2:00 PM. For the key part of the day’s coverage, the Corsa Rosa moves to Rai 2, with “Giro in Diretta” running until 4:15 PM, followed immediately by “Giro all’Arrivo”, which covers the decisive moments of each stage all the way to the finish line. Straight afterwards comes the traditional post-stage analysis show, “Processo alla Tappa”, usually lasting around 45 minutes, without the need to switch channels. Completing the technical and sporting coverage on Rai Sport are “TGiro”, starting at 8:00 PM, featuring interviews, reports and analysis, and “Ri-Giro” at midnight, where the most devoted fans can relive the key moments of the stage step by step. In addition, the race will be broadcast live in full on Eurosport and streaming platforms Discovery+ and HBO Max.

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