Race analysis, favourites, and predictions for Tour of Magnificent Qinghai 2025

This weekend marks the start of both the men’s Tour de France and the Giro d’Italia Women, two of the most important races in the world. But although these two events draw the attention of cycling fans worldwide, they are not the only races taking place these days. In the early hours of Sunday (European time), the Tour of Magnificent Qinghai will also begin in distant China — the newly renamed version of the former Tour of Qinghai Lake. This 2.Pro category race will be an interesting showcase for several ProTeams and continental squads, as the XDS Astana Team will be the only WorldTeam taking part.

 
Route

The race consists of 8 stages. The first and last are completely flat and will almost certainly end in a sprint, though a similar outcome can’t be ruled out in stages 3, 4, 5, and 7. These are labeled as medium mountain stages by the organizers but feature climbs far from the finish, making regrouping before the line likely. The general classification will likely be decided in stages 2 and 6, the most mountainous ones.

 
Favorites

Sprinter Enrico Zanoncello (400) is the only rider priced above 200 credits in the provisional start list, meaning budget constraints won’t be a problem for this race. However, that doesn’t mean creating a team on Cycling Fantasy will be easy, as many lesser-known riders may shine here.

For the general classification, XDS Astana Team riders Harold Martín López (200) and Henok Mulubrah (200) are the main favorites. Joan Bou (200), Cristian Raileanu (200), Merhawi Kudus (200), Jon Agirre (200), Fernando Barceló (200), Manuele Tarozzi (200), Guillermo Thomas Silva (200), Mario Aparicio (200), Abner Santiago Umba (200), and Mikel Bizkarra (200) are also GC contenders.

For the sprints, in addition to Enrico Zanoncello (400), some of the fastest on paper include Manuel Peñalver (200), Alexander Salby (200), Aaron Gate (200), Attilio Viviani (200), Luca Colnaghi (200), Martin Laas (200), and Miguel Ángel Fernández (200).

 
Photo: © Tour of Magnificent Qinghai