Three stages down, and Lidl–Trek find themselves in that most frustrating of positions in a Grand Tour: doing everything right — almost. Both Mads Pedersen and Giulio Ciccone have shown the kind of form required to win a stage at this Vuelta a España. Yet so far, no stage victory, no leader’s jersey, no reward beyond the knowledge that they are among the sharpest riders in the race.

It’s not for lack of clarity. Lidl–Trek came to this Vuelta with a purposefully split agenda: Pedersen for the sprints and punchy finales; Ciccone for the hillier stages and the mountains jersey classification. There’s no ambiguity here. In fact, the pairing seems harmonious — both riders openly committed to helping one another, both hungry, and both in strong form coming into the Italian Gran Partida.

Stage one was an exercise in chaos — a flat, fast run into Novara where Jasper Philipsen stomped to victory and Pedersen found himself swamped in the final kilometre, boxed in and out of position. A minor miscalculation, perhaps. But one that cost him dearly.

Stage two looked far more promising. The final ascent to Limone Piemonte was drawn straight from Ciccone’s playbook: steep, selective, and nervy. And when he launched — all swinging elbows and raw effort — it looked to be a textbook execution. But out of the mist came Jonas Vingegaard, relentless as ever, turning his Vuelta from a cautious re-entry into a statement. Ciccone crossed the line second. But he could hardly have done more, missing out by a matter of centimetres to one of the best riders in the world. 

Then came Monday’s stage three, possibly the most ‘Lidl-Trek’ of stages in the entire Vuelta 2025 route — the kind of finish they lapped up at May’s Giro d’Italia. A rugged day into Ceres with enough bite to drop the out-and-out sprinters like Philipsen, but not enough to isolate the puncheurs. Lidl-Trek did everything right from the start. They were in control all day, brought the break back and protected their leader, Pedersen, well, on the final 2.6km rise to the line to Ceres. He followed Ciccone’s wheel strongly in the final kilometres, opened up early to get into the final hairpins first, and looked to have timed it to perfection. But it was not to be for Pedersen, as David Gaudu stole the day’s honours after a vicious kick and some astute cornering in the final 150m. 

Pedersen was understandably frustrated at the finish, but acknowledged how strong his team rode, "the boys did really good and they did impressive work all day. We knew from the beginning that no one would help us, so it was a pretty hard day for the whole team and I am just sorry that I couldn't deliver what we were working for the whole day. It's tough to say but to finish second is the first loser to the line." 

And yet, if you look past the frustration, the signs are all there that the win is coming. Pedersen said as much after the finish, "we were close two days in a row, but we are showing good signs and we will keep fighting to get the win. The Vuelta is still young, we will get it [a stage win]."

There were some doubts about the Dane’s form after stage one, but he dispelled this with his performance to Ceres, climbing with the likes of Vingegaard, albeit on shallow gradients. For the steeper stuff, Ciccone — fourth today — is showing his climbing punch is one of the best around. The team around the two leaders — Bagioli, Kragh Andersen, Hoole, Ghebreigzabhier, Verona and Bernard — are riding with purpose and collective strength. They don’t need to change anything and a win should come. 

Stage four to Voiron might just be the one. A challenging Alpine start, as the 2025 Vuelta route makes the unusual voyage from Italy to France. Among a few tests, the peloton tackles the Col du Lautaret, reaching over 2,000m in altitude. But despite this, the second half is mostly descending or flat. This could be the perfect stage for Pedersen and his climbing ability because Trek can push hard on the early cols to try and drop their main threat on the flatter finishes: Philipsen. 

If they can control the break and not let it get too far ahead, the team can place Pedersen where he needs to be coming into the final kilometre. The flatter finish suits him down to the ground.

Although we are only three stages into this Vuelta, Lidl-Trek will be anxious to get on the scoreboard. But surely they won’t be left wanting for long? When you're knocking this hard, the door tends to give.