The new inland mountain route from Milan to San Remo and the late decision to limit the number of teams to six are expected to make the Italian Classic a more selective and aggressive race, reducing the chances of the sprinters to dominate the finish on Via Roma.

Race director Mauro Veni was angered and puzzled by the late route change, suggesting that La Classissima may not return to the Ligurian coast.

Organizers RCS Sport added an additional twist to the race, angering the WorldTour teams by asking permission from the UCI to reduce the team size to just six riders in order to gain a wildcard for Bardiani-CSF and Androni Giocattoli-Cidermec.

Veni moved quickly to unveil a new 299-km race route after 13 mayors along the Savona coast refused to allow the race to pass along the Ligurian coast during one of the busiest weekends of the Italian summer, fearing traffic and spectator problems. The area was also experiencing COVID-19 clusters and major traffic problems, and the mayors preferred to limit risk rather than enjoy the global visibility that the race would provide.

"It's as if they united against Milano-Sanremo, which is a pity to see," Veni told La Gazzetta dello Sport of the mayors who rejected the race. [If they felt that way about the history and importance of Milan-San Remo, there was no solution other than to find another route. We were prepared to accept more risk and allow cars to park on both sides of the road, but some towns asked us to put stewards every 50 meters. It was not possible

The new route crosses northern Italy to the west, via the vineyards of Piedmont and the Langhe, before climbing into the valley of the Low Alps. The gentle 4km climb up the Colle di Nava offers the first views of the Mediterranean coast with 65km remaining in the race.

By cutting a long section along the Ligurian coast, Milan - Sanremo will not climb the famous Passo del Turchino near Genoa or the famous Capi climb along the coast. The race route returns to the coast with 36 km to go, immediately hitting the Cipressa climb and entering Poggio before the descent to Sanremo and finishing in the central Via Roma.

The new 299-km race route (plus a neutral section from central Milan) includes a 2,400-meter climb, about 500 meters more than in the past, and the Colle di Nava (which resembles Turchino in profile) is the perfect launching pad for a series of attacks.

"The finale was perhaps more difficult. Tulcino was 120 km from the finish, while Colle di Nava is only 65 km from San Remo. The descent to the coast is fast and safe. It will be a more selective and interesting finale," Veni said.

If the new route creates an exciting, yet finely balanced race between attackers and sprinters, it could be retained in the future as revenge for Savona's rebellious mayors.

"Nothing has been decided yet, but we are not crying blind if some Ligurian mayors are happy with the decision that the race will not pass through their roads. We are not angry at Liguria's refusal, but let's see what happens," Veni said defiantly.