Most exciting wins of 2025?

[ingsve]

I was rewatching some of Uno-X highlights of the year and when I came to Fredrik Dversnes win in Tirreno - Adriatico stage 5 I have to say that must be one of the most thrilling and exciting wins of the entire year for me.

Dversnes was in the break the whole day and attacked and got away alone on the final climb with 7km to go with the group of favorites eating up the rest of the breakaway riders. At the top his lead is 20s but the group of favorites descend fast and when the road flattens out he has a lead of only 3-4 seconds with 3.5 km to go. By all conventional measures he was basically caught by the group of favorites but he keeps riding as hard as he can. The lead stays at around 4 seconds as riders start to attack from the favorites but none are able to bridge up to Dversnes. It's only at less than 2km to go that the gap starts to increase slightly as no one has the legs to chase and Dversnes manages to hold on for the win.

What has been some of your most exciting and thrilling wins of the year? I know what people find exciting and thrilling goes hand in hand with what riders one personally favors but hopefully you all have some good examples that you found extra exciting.

 

[Red Rick]

You can either vote Amstel Gold Race, or you can just choose to be wrong.

 

[tobydawq]

Aranburu's stage in Itzulia was pretty epic, even without the controversy in mind.

Abrahamsen in the Tour. Healy in the Tour. Both were insane rides.

Brennan on stage 1 of Catalunya was one of the most insane finishes you'll ever see.

Powless at Dwars was more comical/tragic than exciting perhaps.

Both of Van Aert's GT stage wins were very special. His assist for Yates' overall Giro win was too.

VPP on Ventoux.

De Lie's GC win at Renewi Tour.

Remco at the Worlds TT.

Those are my candidates (apart from Amstel which Rick already mentioned). I think I'll pick Brennan's Catalunya win. I think that's the only finale I've watched multiple times this year.

Rory Townsend at the Hamburg Cyclassics probably also deserves a mention but I just don't care much about that race.

 

[GenericBoonenFan]

WVA's GT stage wins

One-day-race: Amstel
GT: Giro obviously

 

[SafeBet]

Realistically it's between Van Aert in Paris and Brennan in Catalunya stage 1.

So I'll pick Scaroni's Giro stage win on San Valentino.

 

[CyclistAbi]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWA8ROQUgyc

 

[tobydawq]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWA8ROQUgyc

Yeah, that's fair. It should have been included in my list.

 

[Ilmaestro99]

Trentin. Paris tours. Vintage.

 

[Tim Cahill]

Arensman/Storer TotA double header were both excellent along with the others mentioned.

 

[red_flanders]

Amstel as has been said, and oddly enough, Brabantse Pijl.

 

[dazaau]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWA8ROQUgyc

Dang I forgot about this gem. Too bad he multi-crashed at the Giro. Story of Primoz career though isn't it.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

The ones Pogacar lost.

 

[tobydawq]

Not stages 1 to 4 of Tour de Guangxi.

 

[ChasingPotatoes]

I really liked the European Championship for Mortals (Scaroni vs. Seixas).

 

[Roku]

Pogacar dropping Vingegaard in Hautacam and sealing his 4th TdF

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Tronchon's Tro Bro Leon win was magnificient. Highly entertaining.
Best monument by a reasonable margin was MSR this year. Great win by MVDP.

Sheffield's stage 8 win in PN had me glued to the telly.

 

[joske47]

Milaan - San Remo

 

[Strawberry_Jams]

giro stage 20. next. (actually just realised yates didn't win the stage - but won the giro kind of, if that counts)

but also amstel and brennan.

 

[Jan the Man]

Arensman/Storer TotA double header were both excellent along with the others mentioned.

That is what came to mind for me tok.

AGR, Ronde, and stage 21 of the Tour were also v. enjoyable.

 

[AmRacer]

The battle of the cobbles ended 1-1.

 

[Miss Violet Smith]

Sarah Gigante in the Giro. Hautacam.

Always like to see Pogačar race, always like RVV.

 

[tigabara]

The ones Pogacar lost.

If I'm not mistaken, Remco also lost in that race... But yeaah... what was interesting and rare was Tadej's defeat.

 

[tobydawq]

The ones Pogacar lost.

Does that include Montréal?

 

[AmRacer]

The ones Pogacar lost.

Most TdF stages then?

 

[Squire]

Trentin. Paris tours. Vintage.

Unironically first thing that came to mind for me. But I suspect recency bias is strong with this one.

Others that came to mind immediately were Milan-Sanremo and Amstel. I don't really care much about Pog one way or the other except that he usually makes bike racing incredibly boring to watch, but I guess those times he can be beaten makes for exciting races.

VPP at Ventoux and Dversnes is T-A are good shouts.

Romo's stage win in Tour Down Under was quite a good start to the season. Some of the early Spanish races with Scaroni, Christen, Morgado and Hirschi had some exciting finishes too. Many of the big stage races didn't really have that much excitement this year, I think. A lot of GT stage wins were either big sprints or dominant solos, from GC groups or breakaways. Rouen stage in the Tour was quite good though, and Paris of course.

Not stages 1 to 4 of Tour de Guangxi.

Dwars door het Hageland might actually be my definite answer to this thread. He can be exciting, too!