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Who are the favourites for Milan-San Remo 2025?
La Primavera, La Classicissma, the first Monument of the season, the Sprinter’s Classic, the long one that’s boring for 260km, whatever you want to call it, it’s Milan-San Remo time once again.
The race heads south from Pavia and over the Passo Turchino before following the picturesque Ligurian Riviera west over the famous Cipressa and Poggio climbs before finishing on the Via Roma in San Remo after 289km of racing. For the first time in 20 years, the women’s peloton will be also race up the Poggio as part of Saturday’s festivities, though their race is a slightly sorter affair, at 160km in length.
Tadej Pogačar tops the bookmakers’ list, with odds at around 2/1. Alpecin-Deceuninck duo Mathieu van der Poel and Jasper Philipsen follow, with Mads Pedersen next at odds of 9/1. Betting markets aren’t open for the women’s race, but two-time world champion Lotte Kopecky will start as the favourite. We’ve trawled through the start list, and here are the favourites for the 2025 Milan-San Remo.
Men’s Milan-San Remo favourites
Tadej Pogačar
In theory, Tadej Pogačar should be able to win this race. He’s certainly capable of going clear, it’s just a matter of timing his move. Even if it comes down to a reduced sprint, the Slovenian has a good shot at becoming the first world champion to win this race since Beppe Saronni in 1983.
As expected, Tadej Pogačar is in form. He won the UAE Tour and Strade Bianche, even if a nasty crash almost blew that race off course. The added personnel of Tim Wellens and Jhonathan Narváez will surely bring extra firepower on the Cipressa and Poggio, which could help to thin out the field if the Lidl-Trek sprinters and Jasper Philipsen remain in the mix.
If he wins in Sanremo, he’ll be only one step away from clinching all five Monuments. I’m sure his UAE Team Emirates bosses will have a lot to discuss if he wins on Saturday. Paris-Roubaix might become a real possibility.
Mathieu van der Poel
Now racing in his grey trade kit, Mathieu van der Poel is familiar with the top step of the Classicissma podium. He attacked away over the top of the Poggio in 2023 to take the honours and last year he towed his teammate Jasper Philipsen to his first Monument title.
This year, the Dutchman looked a little exposed at Tirreno-Adriatico. He launched several attacks during the week-long race, however he struggled to open a gap in any of them. Van der Poel often rises to the occasion on the Monument stage, on the other hand. He’s finished on the podium several times here and he’s no stranger to proving doubters wrong.
Having skipped Strade Bianche in preparation for his one-day goals, it’ll be intriguing to see whether Van der Poel has bounced back in time for Milan-San Remo on Saturday.
Jasper Philipsen
Jasper Philipsen won Milan-San Remo last year, having defeated Tadej Pogačar and Michael Matthews in a final dash to the line. Despite being the reigning champion Philipsen isn’t considered the out-and-out favourite in 2025.
The Belgian sprinter – nicknamed ‘The Flame of Ham’ (his hometown) – has looked hit or miss so far this season. He failed to score a stage at the UAE Tour, but he bounced back to win Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne during the opening weekend of the Classics.
He hasn’t raced since receiving the stuffed donkey trophy at the beginning of the month. However, Philipsen cannot be counted out, especially if he has Mathieu van der Poel working on his behalf once again. Although, what’s different to last year is that he will be a known quantity in this race, so he’ll have a big target on his back and other teams won’t want to take him to the line.
Mads Pedersen
Mads Pedersen is absolutely capable of sticking at the front over the Poggio and there’s no doubt he’ll have one of the strongest sprints of whoever he comes to the Via Roma with.
On top of his stage win at Paris-Nice last week, the Dane followed the wheels of fully-fledged GC riders on the hills, so we can be sure that he’s been working on his climbing.
Former world champion Pedersen is yet to win a Monument, but podium finishes in recent years at Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders definitely shows a capability for a major win like this. The Lidl-Trek rider finished inside the top five last year, but with lessons learnt, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the first Scandinavian Monument win since 2021.
Jonathan Milan
Jonathan Milan has been a talisman in the sprints so far this year. He’s already picked up WorldTour wins at the UAE Tour and Tirreno-Adriatico, even if a crash at the latter seemed to have stunted his form on Stage 4. He recovered from that incident to claim the final stage in imperious fashion, so there’s nothing to worry about in regards to Milan’s form.
He’s shown that he can get over the climbs. On a similar finish to Andora at the Giro d’Italia last year, Milan was head and shoulders above the competition, which, on that occasion, included Olav Kooij and Tim Merlier. In 2025 though he’s also come out on top in false-flat sprints and on hillier profiles.
Milan will have to balance out his own ambitions with teammate Mads Pedersen. They’ve done this well in the past, having worked as a lethal double act at last year’s Deutschland Tour. Together, they’ll need to be well-positioned coming onto the Via Roma. Easier said than done, but they also have recent winner Jasper Stuyven by their side.
Filippo Ganna
A podium finisher at this race before, Ineos’s Filippo Ganna will be hoping to turn silver to gold this weekend. The Italian is not your typical Milan-San Remo contender. He doesn’t quite have that punch to beat a Van der Poel or Pedersen but has improved in that area, and certainly you wouldn’t want to be the one tasked with chasing him down if he goes solo.
Ganna’s improved sprint means he’d fancy his chances against Tadej Pogačar or Tom Pidcock if it comes down to it, and his climbing has come a long way since that podium finish two years ago as demonstrated by his GC performance at Tirreno-Adriatico, so he’ll be hoping he can drop the faster finishers on the Poggio.
Olav Kooij
In the absence of Wout van Aert – who will surprisingly skip Milan-San Remo, the only Monument he’s won – Olav Kooij will step up as Visma-Lease a Bike’s leader on Saturday. The Dutch sprinter has been maturing over the past years and he’ll finally have a shot at leading the team at a major Classic here.
Kooij has been in solid form so far in 2025. He bagged some early season wins in the Middle East before adding a stage at Tirreno-Adriatico. He’ll be supported by Visma’s latest French recruit Alex Zingle, who rode a consistent Paris-Nice on behalf of race winner Matteo Jorgenson last week. Sadly for Kooij though, Christophe Laporte’s presence on the start line seems to be off the cards.
If Kooij were to come out victorious, he’d be the youngest rider to win Milan-San Remo in half a century. The Visma sprinter has been knocking on the door of a big win recently, but will Milan-San Remo be a bridge too far for the 23-year-old?
Tom Pidcock
Milan-San Remo feels like the kind of race that should suit Tom Pidcock. His daredevil descending will be an asset if he manages to go clear over the top of the Poggio, and his punchy kick should give him an edge if the attacks go on the climb.
Pidcock has been in sparkling form since the start of the 2025 calendar. He was the only one who could follow Tadej Pogačar two weeks ago at Strade Bianche, and he was sprightly at Tirreno-Adriatico last week.
The Q36.5 rider hasn’t won a Monument before, with a podium finish at Liège-Bastogne-Liège is his only top three, but he’ll be hoping to claim his new team’s first WorldTour victory. They’ve been building up momentum recently, so it feels like the ball is in their court on Saturday to ruffle some feathers.
Given the race’s finale, if he finds himself alone with Pogačar once more, you’d fancy Pidcock’s chances at a first Monument win.
Outside bets
If it comes down to a sprint on the Via Roma, the list of favourites could open up. Biniam Girmay finished inside the top ten on his Monument debut here in 2022 and Jayco-AlUla’s Michael Matthews has always gone well at Milan-San Remo. He finished on the podium here last year and is explicitly targeting this race.
Although no rider has managed to double up in Sanremo since 2010, former winners Matej Mohorič and Jasper Stuyven will be hoping that their experience comes in handy on Saturday.
However, if you’re looking for a real long shot, keep an eye out for Groupama-FDJ’s Lewis Askey, Red Bull’s Roger Adrià, or even one Geraint Thomas.
Women’s Milan-San Remo favourites
Lotte Kopecky
Belgian star Lotte Kopecky has been elusive on the road since winning her second consecutive world title last September. She hasn’t raced since the Simac Ladies Tour in the autumn and she’s dodged early-season races on the road, including Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Strade Bianche. Instead of taking on the gravel or cobbles, Kopecky will make her 2025 debut in Liguria.
Naturally, she’ll be the favourite. The world champion is one of the fastest sprinters in the bunch, plus she has the climbing legs and bike handling to tame the Poggio. It will, however, be interesting to see how she balances out her own chances with teammate Lorena Wiebes. They have two strong cards to play here, so it may take some crystal clear communication from the pair to be sure of their strategy in the final 20km.
Regardless, no other team will want to bring Kopecky onto the Via Roma, she is hands-down the best all-rounder here, but will the race be hard enough to drop the other sprinters?
Elisa Balsamo
Three-time Trofeo Alfredo Binda winner Elisa Balsamo will likely back her chances on a race like Milan-San Remo. The profile isn’t too dissimilar from Trofeo Binda, which she won last weekend, with a few bumps on the way to the finish. She’s a sprinter who can climb, and she’s absolutely capable of hanging on if it doesn’t get too fragmented over the Poggio.
Lidl-Trek have a real knack for winning Monuments. They rise to the occasion in the biggest races and with Balsamo firing on all cylinders, they could be on for a big win on Saturday.
Demi Vollering
Now, the women’s Milan-San Remo route cuts some of the early climbing involved in the men’s race. That said, the double-billing of the Cipressa and Poggio will play their part. For that reason, Demi Vollering has to be given a mention.
Since switching teams, Vollering has sprung into life. She outclimbed the bunch at an early season stage race and she demonstrated her team’s collective strength two weeks ago at Strade Bianche. She may have missed out at the Trofeo Binda last weekend, but Vollering is one of the few riders who could get some distance on the Poggio.
Vollering’s sprint can be a bit hit or miss, but if she’s clear over the Poggio, she’s more than capable of holding on. Her FDJ-Suez teammates could disrupt any attempts to chase behind as well during the frantic rush into Sanremo.
Kristen Faulkner
Reigning Olympic champion Kristen Faulkner hasn’t taken to the road yet in 2025. After taking some time out to recover from a concussion she’ll make her return to the peloton at Milan-San Remo.
As demonstrated at the Paris Olympics, as well as the Vuelta last year, Faulkner doesn’t mind a late attack. She can read a race well and she has the engine required to pull off a Jasper Stuyven-like move on the fast run into the finish.
EF Education-Oatly have a roster packed with talent, namely Cédrine Kerbaol (who could warrant an entry of her own onto this list) and Paris-Roubaix winner Alison Jackson. I can’t imagine they’ll be afraid to throw the cat amongst the pigeons during the final 10km.
Kim Le Court
Kim Le Court has been climbing well so far in 2025. She snuck onto the podium overall at the UAE Tour and she valiantly fought in an escape group alongside Pauline Ferrand-Prévot at Strade Bianche.
The Mauritian champion – whose jersey looks remarkably similar to the world champion’s stripes – has a fair sprint on her too. The AG Insurance-Soudal rider may benefit from a lower profile than her counterparts. We’ve seen at the men’s race that this can sometimes be an advantage.
Lorena Wiebes
Without any recent races to draw comparisons to, we’re slightly in the dark over how pivotal of a role the climbs will play in the women’s race. If the revived Milan-San Remo Donne lives up to the mantra of ‘The Sprinter’s Classic’, then count Lorena Wiebes in.
The European champion isn’t the strongest climber on paper. That said, she can get up a few moderate bumps. She demonstrated this during her brief stint on the gravel last year and a runners-up spot at Amstel Gold last spring.
It’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t work out for Wiebes, or if she’s not feeling good on the climbs. The squad have teammate Kopecky to fly the SD Worx flag at the head of the race.
Marianne Vos
Smart money would be investing in Marianne Vos. With her breakout season in her debut back in 2006, she was only one year too late to compete in the previous version of the women’s Milan-San Remo. But in the race’s absence she’s won just about everything else and all but certified herself as the GOAT.
Vos is certainly capable of making it up the Poggio with the favourites, is certainly a skilled descender and is certainly one of the fastest sprinters. She also has a strong team for support, which is filled with multidisciplinary talents including former MTB star Pauline Ferrand-Prévot as well as first year pros Viktória Chladonová – the junior XCO World Champion – and British rider Imogen Wolff. They will be able to descend with Vos to help her pull back any potential moves in the final few kilometres.
Outside bets
With the first Milan-San Remo trophy on the line, the women’s race will be complemented by a field of star riders.
The aforementioned Cédrine Kerbaol is worth keeping an eye on. The Breton rider is a fantastic descender and her attacking flair may play to her strengths over the top of the Poggio. Likewise, Yara Kastelijn and Puck Pieterse could favour their chances. Kastelijn rode a solid Strade Bianche and her teammate Pieterse is one of the best descenders in the world.
British hopes will be pinned on Cat Ferguson and Pfeiffer Georgi. Movistar’s Ferguson cracked the podium at her first WorldTour race last weekend at Trofeo Binda, sprinting to third behind Balsamo and Blanka Vas. That should have given her confidence ahead of this weekend. Georgi meanwhile is a proven Classics contender and initially finished just behind Ferguson in fifth at Trofeo Binda before she was relegated. This race, with less climbing, will suit her better, and she has a strong sprint, so expect her to be present in the finale.
Finally the experienced Pauline Ferrand-Prévot will be looking to play a role here. The MTB Olympic gold medallist should be in the top tier of descenders and showed good legs in Strade Bianche.
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