Paris-Tours 2017 Preview

By David Hunter

Brou – Tours 234.5km

The traditional end of the cycling season.

Quite often, this is one of the most boring races of the season. Only the wind can make this race interesting, until we get close to the finish. The last 10km is action packed and fun to watch!

Weather

The wind is coming from the west, making it perfect for crosswinds, but it doesn’t look to be strong enough. The riders may also get a little wet along the way.

Finale

The finish is punctuated with two climbs, making it possible for late attackers to stay away. This finish is seen just that in the last few years, remember 2016 was a different route.

Cote de Beau is 400m at 8% and Cote de l’Epan is around 300m at 7%. These climbs sound like nothing, but they are hard enough to snap the elastic. The main reason is this race comes at the end of a long season and most riders are tired. It can be won by the attackers, but also the sprinters.

In order for the race to be a sprint, there needs to be a couple of teams willing to work in the final 7km. The riders that attack will be incredibly strong, there needs to be around four riders working on the front of the bunch to shut down the move. The chances of the sprinters are in their hands.

Contenders

Stefan Küng – it’s been an impressive season for the Swiss youngster, as he starts to take a seat at the top table of cycling. BMC arrive without GVA, who has stopped the season a little earlier than usual. That will give Kung more freedom and he has to be their option to attack on the final climbs. A brilliant TT rider, he is more than capable of holding off the chasing pack.

Nacer Bouhanni – in recent races, Bouhanni has been riding in support of others, something quite remarkable considering the size of his ego! Given the type of race, I would expect to see him fighting for the victory. Cofidis have a good record in home races and I expect to see them leading the peloton for large parts of the day. If not Bouhanni, they have Christophe Laporte in good form.

Mark Cavendish – it’s been a while since we’ve seen Cav sprinting. His horror crash in the Tour de France has left him unable to ride at 100% for the remainder of the season. After taking his recovery at a sensible pace, it would be great to see him having and sprinting before the season is over. As we all know, Cavendish can easily get over little climbs, making him one of the favourites for this race. However, he does need to be 100% to challenge for the win.

Andre Greipel – it was great to see the Gorilla back winning. After a fairly low period, where he was devoid of confidence, he will now feel like a million dollars. Ending the season on a high will also keep him motivated throughout the Winter and I’m sure Lotto will look to chase down the late move and set up a sprint finish.

Fernando Gaviria – the defending champion is back! Last season he surprised all the sprinters by going for a long one. This year, he arrives with good form and starts as one of the big favourites. Not only do QuickStep have Gaviria, but they also have the strongest team in the race. It will be interesting to see what they do on the final climbs, will they try and contain or attack? If they do go on the offensive, we might just see the Colombian at the very front of the race. We all know he loves attacking.

Matteo Trentin – winner of the race in 2015, he is the second ace that QuickStep have. Currently enjoying the best form of his career, it looks like the Belgians just have to decide which rider takes the win. After “only” finishing 2nd in Binche, the Italian would love to finish his QuickStep career with another win.

Dylan Groenewegen – it’s been a wonderful year for the Jumbo sprinter. Not only did he take a win in Paris, but he also took wins in the Tour of Yorkshire, Tour of Norway, Ster and the Tour of Britain. At just 24 years of age, he has an incredible future ahead of him. Not always a huge fan of hills, he should have enough to stay with the peloton over the final two climbs. If he makes the sprint, he will expect to win.

Prediction Time

QuickStep have to win this. My only problem is deciding which of their riders takes the win. I think I’ll go with Gaviria, winning after attacking on the final climb.

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