Tour of Romandie 2015 – Stage 6 Preview

By David Hunter

Lausanne – Lausanne 17.3km

It’s TT day and time for the GC to be settled. The route is different to last year, with more flat and easier climbs. This should favour the TT specialists.

It’s going to be wet for all the riders and the wind is to remain constant. Start times, shouldn’t have a huge impact on the race, although having teammates to match your effort against, can be crucial.

The first climb is 1km at 6%. Then we have a 760m section at 10.8%. This is where the climbers can take some time on the TT riders, but not enough to make up for the rest of the course.

The TT specialists are: Tony Martin, Rohan Dennis, Stefan Kung, Jonathan Castroviejo, Chris Froome, Rigoberto Uran, Michael Hepburn, Campbell Flakemore and Kristoff Vandewalle. We then have some climbers that can TT well: Rui Costa, Simon Spilak, Thibaut Pinot, Rafal Majka, JC Peraud and Vincenzo Nibali.

Tony Martin is the big favourite for the race. The two climbs are straightforward for him and he’ll be able to make a lot of time on the flat. The German, has lost his last two TTs and isn’t used to it! Expect a huge performance from Herr Martin.

Rohan Dennis has just lost his hour record. His TT ability continues to improve but he’s still a little behind Tony Martin. He looks set for another 2nd place, something he is used to. If the climbs turn out to be harder than on paper, it will favour him.

Chris Froome hasn’t competed in many TTs, since his disastrous Vuelta performance. That day he was awful. To be fair to him, he is one of the best in the world. I think he took a psychological knock that day and hasn’t quite recovered yet. He needs a big TT performance before the TDF and this is a great chance.

The route is quite technical, with plenty of corners. In the wet, this will test the bravery and skills of the riders. Froome isn’t noted for either of these qualities.

Rigoberto Uran is developing into a quality TT rider. He has his eyes on the big Giro TT and this is perfect preparation. He is a rider that likes the longer TTs and this isn’t quite long enough for him. He should have enough to finish in the top 5 but not take the win. He will have the splits of Tony Martin, which is a massive help. Can he keep to them?

Kung and Flakemore represent the new generation of TT riders. Kung took a brilliant win, in stage 4, and will want to post a big time. Both men ride for BMC and will be disappointed not to finish in the top 10.

Same as normal, equipment is important. A winner not from Etixx, Sky, BMC, Orica and Trek would be a big surprise. That being said, Katusha did post a very impressive TTT and that looks good for Simon Spilak. However, he’s never won a TT before and against Tony Martin, I doubt he’ll start here.

The GC is finely balanced. Zakarin leads Pinot by 6 seconds, Froome by 14 seconds and Spilak by 19 seconds. It’s going to be very hard to keep a hold of this jersey. Pinot has improved but not by enough to threaten Froome or Spilak. This is another battle between the big 2.

Prediction Time

It should be a day for the TT specialist and expect Tony Martin to take the win. The GC battle is going to be fascinating!

David Hunter

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