The 2022 Tour de France route could well benefit Julian Alaphilippe. Consequence of a first week like no other.
With no less than six mountain stages, including five at the top, and no less than 53 kilometers of time trial, the Tour de France 2022 seems cut out for Tadej Pogacar, capable of crushing the competition on all terrains or almost. But according to Cyrille Guimard, the first week is so tricky that it could completely redistribute the cards, in particular because of the two stages run in Denmark and the passage on the cobblestones of the north.
“If I was at the head of a team with a rider who takes the start with a chance to win the Tour, I would be very worried. It’s the first time I’ve seen such a Tour, where anything can happen on the first six stages. The two stages in line in Denmark, if it’s windy, there will necessarily be damage, and then there is this cobblestone stage afterwards ”, he told the Cyclismactu site, adding: “It is after this cobblestone stage that we will have to take stock, and I remain convinced that a certain number of leaders will have disappeared from the list of favorites. We have never had a start with so many risks and so dangerous for the leaders. When we arrive at the foot of La Planche des Belles Filles, a lot of things will have already happened and I believe that we will have an unprecedented configuration at that time. ”
And to believe the man with seven victories on the Tour alongside Lucien van Impe, Bernard Hinault or Laurent Fignon, Julian Alaphilippe could well have a card to play thanks to the Deceuninck-Quick Step, necessarily very comfortable on its grounds. “It might be the year of the underdogs, why not. Imagine curbs with the Deceuninck-Quick Step which starts with Julian Alaphilippe and which relegates all the other favorites to 3-4 minutes, a cobblestone stage which also creates a lot of damage, and Alaphilippe would then be in a position to win the Tour, assaulted the Northerner. THEThe circumstances of the race can lead to other scenarios. In the first stages, teams like the Deceuninck-Quick Step, if the weather conditions are favorable, will have an interest in blowing everything up. And that’s where in the cars, the sports directors will make oil… It announces an absolutely epic first week, it will be it by obligation. ”
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