How to watch Stage 6 of the Giro as Pogacar looks to key rivals at bay

Three sections of sterrato will spice up this unpredictable stage through Tuscany that also features a punchy climb to the hilltop town of Volterra.

Until that Cat. 4 test (4.2km at 5.5%), the route is flatter than a leftover glass of Prosecco the night after a big wedding, with the riders spiriting themselves inland from Torre del Lago, the seaside town dear to the composer Giacomo Puccini.

A total of 11.6km of gravel over three sections includes the 2.5km climb to Grotti Alto (6.6%). The third section of gravel rises for 2.4km to the semi-abandoned village of Pievina ahead of a technical descent to Asciano. After a false-flat there’s one small climb before the fast slightly uphill push onto the spa town of Rapolano Terme.

This amount of gravel is hardly comparable to Strade Bianche, but its position in a key part of a Grand Tour stage could make it a decisive point of the first week of racing. It’s the old cliché of the race not being won here, but vital ground potentially being lost.

Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) is already in pole position and will be looking to consolidate – or more likely increase – his 46-second advantage over Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) in the general classification.

The UK coverage will be bookended by The Breakaway, presented by Orla Chennaoui, who has a string of esteemed guests joining her across the three weeks. Usual suspects Dan Lloyd, Adam Blythe and 12-time stage winner Robbie McEwen will return, with former Jumbo-Visma star Nathan van Hooydonck swooping in for the final week as Blythe resumes his duties on the motorbike in Italy.

And fans of Jonathan Vaughters are in for a treat on Stages 8 and 9, with the outspoken EF Education–EasyPost supremo joining our coverage.

Meanwhile, the charismatic Jens Voigt (Stages 1-9), former road star Daniel Oss (Stages 10-14), two-time winner Alberto Contador (Stage 15) and Blythe (Stages 16-21) will be doing their thing on the back of a motorbike to bring fans closer to the action.