2023 Il Lombardia Race Preview
The details of this year's 2023 Il Lombardia are falling into place. Find the latest route profiles and maps below, followed by our strategic preview of the race.
The roads of Lombardy prepare to host cycling's final monument of the season, a race that traditionally brings the curtain down on the classics calendar with a suitably dramatic and demanding test through the Italian lake district. Often called the Race of the Falling Leaves, Il Lombardia winds through some of the most beautiful and brutal terrain in professional cycling, with the autumn colours painting the hillsides as the peloton takes on climbs that have defined careers and broken spirits in equal measure.
The 2023 edition promises to be a fascinating contest, with the route once again presenting those iconic ascents that make this race unlike any other on the calendar. The Civiglio and San Fermo della Battaglia feature prominently in the final hours of racing, giving the pure climbers a platform to launch their bids for glory while testing the ability of any hopeful attackers to sustain efforts over terrain that never truly relents.
Tadej Pogacar arrives as the overwhelming favourite and the defending champion, having demonstrated throughout the 2023 season that he exists in a category largely of his own. The Slovenian has an almost supernatural ability to accelerate on steep gradients and has shown a particular affection for this race, possessing the punch, the endurance and the tactical intelligence to win in multiple ways. Stopping him will require a near perfect performance from his rivals.
Jonas Vingegaard, fresh from his Tour de France triumph over Pogacar earlier in the summer, represents perhaps the most credible threat, though the Dane has less of a track record on these shorter, punchier monuments. His climbing ability is beyond question but Lombardia demands a specific kind of explosive power on repeated short climbs that may suit Pogacar more naturally.
Remco Evenepoel won this race in 2022 and will be deeply motivated to reclaim a title he considers his own. The Belgian is a ferocious competitor who rarely concedes anything without a fight, and his ability to time trial on climbs gives him a threat that others cannot easily replicate. Whether he has the top end punch to match Pogacar on the very steepest ramps remains the central question surrounding his challenge.
Adam Yates, Enric Mas, David Gaudu and Aleksandr Vlasov all possess the climbing credentials to feature if the race fragments as expected, while a rider like Mattias Skjelmose has shown remarkable maturity this season and could announce himself further on the monuments stage.
Weather will play its usual role in shaping the day, with the lakes capable of generating unpredictable conditions that can transform the race entirely. Rain on those narrow, twisting descents demands a different kind of bravery and technical skill, potentially disrupting the calculations of even the most prepared teams.
The race will almost certainly come down to the final climbs, with attacks likely on the Civiglio before the surviving contenders face the demanding run to the finish. Pogacar will be watched obsessively by his rivals, all of them knowing from bitter experience that leaving him in contact on the final climb is tantamount to conceding defeat. Someone will need to find something exceptional to deny him a back to back victory in one of cycling's most beloved and atmospheric events.
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