Tour de France – Previews

Previews on the upcoming Tour de France cycle race. Stage previews, rider insights, betting and more!

Tour de France: Stage 18 Preview: Briançon – Izoard

The race for the Yellow Jersey will all but be decided today on the slopes of the Col d’Izoard. 

Today marks the final day of the Tour where the climbers will get to show us their stuff as they depart from Briançon for the mighty Col d’Izoard.

Although the climb has featured prominently throughout the history of the Tour, 2017 – remarkably so – sees the first time that we’ll finish a stage at the summit.
Read More Now>>

Tour de France: Stage 17 Preview: La Mure – Serre-Chevalier 

We’re in the Alps for today’s stage which will see the field travel from La Mure – Serre-Chevalier.

A split in the peloton yesterday saw both Louis Meinjes and Dan Martin lose around 30 seconds on their nearest rivals just a day before a stage both would no doubt have been targeting.

Today’s stage sees the first of a two-day foray into the Alps which will have the field tackle a number of iconic climbs – most notably the Col du Galibier and the Izoard – before the final two stages of the race sees the riders return to the flat stuff.

Read More Now>>

Tour de France: Stage 12 Preview: Pau – Peyragudes

The battle for Yellow in the Tour de France comes alive today as the field prepare to enter the Pyrenees.  

Today is where the Tour begins in earnest for the GC contenders as we enter the mighty Pyrenees. With Chris Froome, Fabio Aru, Romain Bardet and Rigoberto Uran all in the GC mix, today will most certainly separate the men from the boys.

Froome has typically dominated stages like this in the past and will definitely look to lay down a marker today. He won’t have it all his own way, however, with the other GC contenders sure to test his mettle in mountains.
Read More Now>>

Tour de France: Stage 11 Preview: Eymet – Pau

Stage 11 of the 2017 Tour de France represents the the final flat stage before the field head into the Pyrenees on Thursday. 

Marcel Kittel will look to claim his fifth stage win today before the sprinters go into survival mode in the Pyrenees. The German barely broke a sweat as he beat his closest competitors to the line Bergerac.

Will anyone be able to deny the German yet another stage win today as we descend into Pau after 203.5 kilometres on a pretty tame stage? Let’s take a look:
Read More Now>>

Tour de France: Stage 10 Preview: Périgueux – Bergerac

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?
Read More Now>>

Tour de France: Stage Seven Preview: Troyes – Nuits-Saint-Georges

It’s another day for the sprinters as the field heads from Troyes to Nuits-Saint-Georges.

The seventh stage of the 2017 Tour de France, although slightly hilly in the middle sections, will likely end in yet another bunch sprint with any breakaway likely to be reeled in.

Marcel Kittel showed just how good he is yesterday as he powered past Andre Greipel and Arnaud Demare to claim his second stage of this year’s Tour. Can he make three inside of the first week? Let’s take a look:
Read More Now>>

Tour de France: Stage Six: Vesoul – Troyes

We’re back on the flat stuff today as the field travels from Vesoul to Troyes.

Fabio Aru claimed his first ever Tour win yesterday as he accelerated away from the likes of Chris Froome and Richie Porte over the final kilometre at La Planche des Belles Filles.

Today sees the riders tackle a far more benign stage before we hit the first real mountainous section of the 104th Tour on Saturday.
Read More Now>>

Tour de France: Stage Five: Vesoul – Troyes

Today represents the first summit finish on the 2017 Tour de France as the riders climb toward the summit of La Planche des Belles Filles.

This is the one we’ve all been waiting for: the first summit finish of this year’s Tour will see the riders finish in the category 1 La Planche des Belles Filles. Yesterday’s stage was full of controversy as Peter Sagan was DQ’d from the Tour following an elbow in the sprint at the end of the stage all but ended Mark Cavendish’s Tour.

We’re likely to see a new man in yellow today if Geraint Thomas isn’t able to keep up with the pace up the final climb. The stage is set for one of the big GC contenders to have a go, whether or not one of them will attack this early remains to be seen.
Read More Now>>


Tour de France: Stage Four: Mondorf-les-Bains – Vittel

After victory on stage three, Peter Sagan will look to once again close the gap on Marcel Kittel in the points classification. 

There were no real surprises yesterday as Peter Sagan claimed the stage victory from Michael Matthews as many of the pure sprinters were content to amble up to the finish line, no doubt saving themselves for today.

Today’s stage looks pretty straightforward until we reach the final stages where a slight climb to the finish will make life tough for the usual powerhouse sprinters. It looks as though it’ll be a fascinating finish in Vittel today, let’s take a look:

Stage three of the Tour de France will take the field through three countries on a fairly hilly stage  

Stage three of the Tour will see the riders tackle a fairly hilly route that will see the field make their way from Belgium to Luxembourg before finishing the stage in the French commune of Longwy.

One thing’s for sure, there won’t be a bunch sprint to the finish today as we end the stage atop the Cote des Religieuses – a 1.6-kilometre climb at a gradient of 5.8%.
Read More Now>>

The 2017 edition Tour de France gets underway on 1 July with a 14-kilometre time-trial through the streets of Düsseldorf.

We kick things off this year with a Grand Départ that will see the riders tear through the streets of Germany’s ninth most popular city, Düsseldorf. While this stage is too long to be considered a prologue, the course is still short enough for the riders to have a real go with a few three flat stages to follow.

While all eyes will be on the likes of Tony Martin and Primož Roglic, it would be unwise to rule out a big performance from Richie Porte who – as well as winning the individual time-trial in the Dauphine – looks to be a genuine contender for the GC this year.
Read More Now>>