Verona to Verona
Sunday 2nd June, 15.6kms
No criterium around the bumpy streets of Rome this year, instead they face a 15.6km individual TT that takes them over a 4.5km climb right in the middle and finishes in the Roman amphitheatre in Verona.
Feltre - Monte Avena
Saturday 1st June, 193kms
There will be lots of tired bodies in the race at this stage, but the organisers seem to have little pity for them, hitting them with another monster of a stage on the second last day with over 5,000m of vertical gain again.
Treviso - San Martino di Castrozza
Friday 31st May, 151kms
A shortish stage at just 151kms, but with everyone thinking about the brute of a stage the next day and the final TT after that, could it be another day that the breakaway makes it all the way?
Valdaora - Santa Maria di Sala
Thursday 30th May, 222kms
After two tough days of climbing the riders will be glad to hear that this stage is almost totally downhill! Bar a couple of bumps they are basically descending from the 30km mark, all the way to the finish, 190kms later!
Commezzadura - Anterselva
Wed. 29th May, 181kms
Another day of climbing, following on from that monster stage yesterday, and although this stage looks a lot easier on paper, there is still a summit finish to contend with on the final 30km climb to Anterselva.
Lovere - Ponte di Legno
Tuesday 28th May, 226kms
They return from the second rest day to what should have been a brute of a Queen stage, with the
back-breaking twin challenge of the legendary Passo Gavia and Passo Del Mortirolo.
Saint Vincent - Courmayeur
Saturday 25th May, 131kms
The shortest road stage of the Giro at just 131kms, it doesn't mean that it's going to be easy though with a very hard day in the saddle ahead of the riders with over 4,000m of vertical gain.
Pinerolo - Ceresole Reale
Friday 24th May, 188kms
Finally a mountain summit.. It's only taken 13 stages, but we finally get a summit finish and should see another test of the GC men on the road proper. This is a stunning-looking finish, it will make for spectacular viewing!
Carpi - Novi Ligure
Wednesday 22nd May, 206kms
An almost identical stage to stage 10, but this time we have to endure 206kms of flat nothingness along the Po valley. Lots of long, straight, flat, open roads, although there is a slightly uphill finish to this sprint at least.
Ravenna - Modena
Tuesday 21th May, 147km
Stage 10 last year was the longest of the 2018 Giro, this year's stage 10 is one of the shortest at just 147kms. Not a lot to say about it really, it's almost a dead straight line from Ravenna to Modena and barely a ripple in the profile. One to tune in to for the last 10kms.
Riccione - San Marino
Sunday 19th May, 34.7kms
The second TT of the race, and one that could really star to shape the GC ahead of the mountains to come. This is a stage that the likes of Roglic and Bob Jungels will look to try to gain more time against the mountain goats.
Tortoreto Lido - Pesaro
Sat 18th May, 239kms
The longest stage of the Giro at 239kms, it has a touch of the Milan-SanRemo's about it, with a flat opening 160kms and then a lumpy end to the day, even ending with a charge down a descent to the 2.5kms to go mark.
Vasto - L'Aquila
Friday 17th May, 180kms
The Giro visits L'Aquila, in an area devastated by earthquakes just 10 years ago and after a hilly day in the saddle the riders will face a very tricky and demanding finish in L'Aquila, with tight roads and steep gradients.
Cassino - San Gio. Rotondo
Thurs 16th May, 233kms
The 'holy stage', the stage finishes in San Giovanni Rotondo, the home of 'Padre Pio' who was made a saint after his death in 1968. It's a very long stage with a sting in the tail, the sprinters will have their work cut out to make it to the finish.
Frascati - Terracina
Wed 15th May, 140kms
The race carries on down the west coast of Italy for the last stage on the Tyrennanean coast with a stage that should be another chance for the sprinters, as the last 40kms are almost dead flat.
Orbetello - Frascati
Tuesday 14th May, 228kms
They continue to head south by leaving Orbetello and heading inland a little to some beautiful, rolling countryside en-route to the suburbs of Rome. They skirt around the capital, but don't actually go in to Rome this year.
Vinci - Orbetello
Monday 13th May, 220kms
Stage 3 is a celebration of the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo Da Vinci, as they set out from the town bearing his name. It looks like another day for the sprinters, with the pan-flat last 20kms run-in to Orbetello.
Bologna - Fucecchio
Sunday 12th May, 205kms
The second stage is quite a tough introduction to the race and it's going to be a hard stage to control. The last 20kms might be flat, but there's a lot of hills to get over before that for any sprinters with designs on winning this stage.
A selection of other bets
I've done the Favourites and who I think will win the Sprints jersey and the KOM jersey. Here I take a look at some of the other markets that are available such as Team Classification, young riders and more.
Astana to rule the road?
Team classification - a tricky market to work out - you need to try to find a team that will score three guys high up the results in every stage, as it's the aggregate time of the top three finishers every stage added together that decides this competition.
Can anyone beat Lopez?
This time last year Miguel Angel Lopez was an un-backable 1/5 to win this competition, but going in to stage 13 he was 1'21" behind the revalation Richard Carapaz.
Who will win the Points Jersey at the 2019 Giro?
The leader of the points competition in the Giro wears the Cyclamen jersey.. Cyclawhat? Cyclamen - named after the Alpine flower of the same colour, it was introduced in 1970 (changed from a red colour).
Who will be the KOM at the 2019 Giro?
The competition for the 'Maglia Azzura' for the King of the Mountains of the Giro is always a really hard one to call, as there are just so many riders who could have their eyes on this prestigious prize.
Bologna - San luca
Sat 11th May, 8.5km ITT
The Giro goes back to its traditional Saturday start, having started on a Friday in Jerusalem in 2018. But like last year they start with an individual TT, and at 8.5kms it's even shorter than last year's opening test won by Tom Dumoulin.
Tom and Rog battle for pink
This time last year I was talking about Tom Dumoulin going to have a hard time of it defending his title, what with Chris Froome taking to the start line. There's no Froome this year, but Dumoulin has new foes taking him on for the Maglia Rosa.
Ivrea - Como
Sunday 26th May, 237kms
This will be an interesting stage that finishes like the Autumn Classic il Lombardia, with the climbs of Ghisallo, Colma di Sormano and Civiglio coming before the downhill charge to the finish in Como.
Cuneo - Pinerolo
Thurs 23rd May, 146kms
After two dead flat and boring stages, this one is also pretty flat for the vast majority of it, but the profile is punctuated by the spike up to over 1200m for the first Cat 1 climb of the race, the Mentoso.
