Filippo Ganna the climber knocks Remco Evenepoel off popular Strava KOM

Filippo Ganna has thrown down the gauntlet ahead of Classics season by knocking Remco Evenepoel off the top spot of one of the most popular Strava KOMs in Spain's Costa Blanca region.

The Coll de Rates is an ascent not far from Calpe, a favourite off-season hangout for the pros. The record for the northern approach is owned by Tadej Pogačar, who set a new record time back in December, but the far less likely candidate of Ineos Grenadiers rider Ganna now lays claim to that of the southern approach.

The Italian time trial and pursuit specialist, whose racing weight is listed as 83kg, took the crown from the shoulders of diminutive Evenepoel by a single second during a 140km ride at the weekend that he titled Giro Mattutino on Strava.

He also set a KoM time on the climb to Castels, knocking pro rider Lennert Teugels off the top spot. He also set a further 77 PRs, suggesting that Ganna had set out with some degree of purpose. He averaged 35.4kph over the whole ride, which covered some 2,000m of vertical ascent.

Ganna's impressive outing will be one of the final big training rides before the he starts his season at the five-stage Étoile de Bessèges in France tomorrow (February 5). With a final-day time trial, it will give him a chance to test his 2025 legs against the clock and gauge his progress.

The next big appointments that Ganna currently has lined up will be Milan-San Remo (March 22) and Paris-Roubaix (April 13). Later in the year he could ride the Tour de France.

The 28-year-old Italian is a rider brimming with raw power and on the right day can be a contender in either of these Classics. He has already chalked up a second place in San Remo and sixth in Paris-Roubaix (both in 2023).

Taking up his climbing ability a notch – as it appears we're seeing in this latest training ride – could allow him to get through Milan-San Remo's crucial series of hills with a bit more in the tank to give him the best chance of winning. It could also allow him to be more useful in the mountains to teammate and GC hope Carlos Rodríguez.