A fairly straightforward sprint stage here, but the breakaway might think that they have a chance here, with a nice climb early to prevent the teams of the sprinters controlling the move, and a category 1 climb before the mid-point of the stage. A flat finish will encourage Cofidis and Lampre to chase for their fast men however.
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A very short stage to kick off the Dauphine this year, with the finishing circuit reminiscent of a slightly more tame Liege-Bastogne-Liege. I think this stage will likely come down to how the teams of the favourites opt to ride it. If they attack, then we could see the peleton split to bits and some big gaps early in the race, or it could be the situation where it ends up in a reduced bunch sprint, with perhaps some of the lesser names trying to attack later on.
The parcours for this edition of the Dauphine is varied, with no one stage the same, and plenty of different ways for riders to make time on GC. The sprinters aren't going to have the best of races, which is probably why only a few have turned up, but there should be a number of chances from reduced bunches for hardier riders. The organisers have snuck a team time trial as well, and the major climbing comes toward the end of the race in the Alps.
The typical procession around the finishing city awaits Alberto Contador, and he has done them all. Paris, Madrid and Milan have all played host to the scene of the diminuitive Spaniard's successes, which have cast a dominant shadow on the world of cycling. The last stage is traditionally one for the sprinters, but with a technical finish, and some pretty tired riders, it could also be a day for the breakaway.
It's unfortunate that the GC is essentially decided at this point, as this stage would be a fabulous showdown for a close race. As it is, it will still be a fabulous race, but the stage victory and the mountains jersey will be the only things in the balance (barring disaster for Contador). It has been a long Giro for a lot of teams, and that would suggest a breakaway will have a lot of impetus, but plenty of strong riders like Uran (above) won't want to go away empty-handed.
Whereas just the one climb yesterday created difficulties for most of the GC guys not named Contador or Hesjedal, there will be three climbs into the stage final today, which should provide the basis for some more exciting racing.
The first of the three final days in the mountains, it is a mostly flat day in the saddle, then a massive obstacle in the form of the Monte Ologno, and a sharp descent into the finish from there. Another decent day for the break, but Astana do look pretty keen on stage wins and could well keep the race together.
This looks like either a tricky sprint day or one for the break, and I think we'll see the break win here, with a tricky start to the stage likely to see a powerful break go away. Even if the break is brought back, it is a difficult finish for the fast men, with an uncategorised climb summiting with 4 kms left and a technical descent into the finish line.
Tinkoff-Saxo were badly exposed on the last stage, but Contador was untroubled and he looks to have the race well in hand. Astana are adopting some odd tactics, sure Landa won the stage and moved up the GC, but Cataldo was dropped early on and tumbled out of the top 10. There were a number of other impressive performances, but Trofimov was impressive as he nearly took the chocolates.
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AuthorI'm Jamie Finch-Penninger, better known as Fishy, the best DS to ever sit a couch. Anything which I don't cover for a bigger site will be up here. Archives
October 2015
CategoriesCome here for the previews of all the World Tour races this season, plus any Pro Continental/NRS/tricycle races that take my fancy. Along as it's pro cycling I'll have some sort of opinion on it. I'm Australian, so be prepared for a healthy Orica-Greenedge bias. Please feel free to request any changes or previews, and stay up to date on Twitter and Facebook.
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