After two grueling days in the Alps we’re back on the flat stuff today as the riders travel from Périgueux to Bergerac.
We’re back on the flat today for a 178 kilometre stage following the first rest day of 2017. The sprinters will no doubt be happy to see the back of Mont du Chat and the Alps as they gear up for another flat finish.
Marcel Kittel has been almost untouchable in the sprints this year and will be targeting his fourth win in just 10 stages at Bergerac this afternoon. Can the German continue his dominance or will one of the other sprinters shine today in Bergerac?
To Win Stage
Marcel Kittel 5/10 | Andre Greipel 4/1 | Alexander Kristoff 8/1 | Edvald Boasson Hagen 11/1 | Michael Matthews 14/1
The Contenders
Marcel Kittel
Kittel will be quietly confident heading into this stage following Arnaud Demare – the German’s closest rival in the sprints this year – missing the cut-off on Sunday after struggling with illness. With Cavendish and Sagan also out of this year’s race, Andre Greipel is the only other rider that I can see challenging Kittel on stages like this.
Andre Greipel
The Gorilla is under real pressure to maintain his excellent record of grabbing at least one stage win in every Grand Tour he has participated in. At this point, it looks as though he’ll need Kittel to make an error or have massive luck in the final few hundred metres to grab a stage ahead of his fellow German.
Edvald Boasson Hagen
The Norwegian was desperately unlucky to lose out on stage seven following the photo finish. I think we’ll see the Dimension Data team working quite hard to put him in the best position possible this afternoon. He’s shown he can mix it up with the best – today could well be his day.
The Route
Although a bit hilly, today’s route should be pretty straight-forward. It’ll be a welcome sight for just about everyone in the field after the drama on Sunday which saw Richie Porte crash out of the Tour as well as Fabio Aru attacking after Froome suffered a mechanical issue.
There are two category four climbs today at 100.5 kilometres in (Côte de Domme – 3.5 kilometres long at 3.3%) and at the 138.5-kilometre mark (Côte du Buisson-de-Cadouin – 2.1 kilometres long at 5.6%). Neither should provide too much of a challenge. We’ll likely see Warren Barguil grab a solid amount of points as he looks to keep Primož Roglič at arm’s length.
The two climbs flank the intermediate sprint at 121 kilometres in. Keep an eye out for Sonny Colbrelli who may well find himself in the breakaway in order to collect maximum points. The Italian will fancy his chances at claiming the Green Jersey after Peter Sagan’s ejection from the race.
Verdict: Sonny Colbrelli to finish ahead of Rüdiger Selig (match-ups) at 12/10
The Italian will be looking for as many points as possible today in his hunt for the Green Jersey. I’m not really sure why he’s been paired up against Selig let alone priced up at 12/10 – massive value here at 12/10. Make sure not to miss out.
Value Bet: Edvald Boasson Hagen 11/1
The Norwegian has shown he can mix it up with the best after being beaten out in a photo finish in stage seven by Kittel. He’ll be in the mix and could even grab the stage win should his Dimension Data teammates give his a bit of assistance in the last few kilometres.
