Tour of the Alps 2018 – Stage 2 Preview

By David Hunter

Lavarone – Alpe di Pampeago 145.5km

This is what you call a proper mountaintop finish!

This is the Queen stage, with two huge mountains for the bunch to climb. First up is Passo Redebus which is 15.7km at 6.2%, but cresting with around 95km remaining makes it just a warm up for the final climb.

Alpe di Pampeago is one of the hardest climbs you can do, the final 4km hardly drops under 10%. Pavel Tonkov won here in 1998, Marco Pantani in 1999, Gilberto Simoni in 2003, Emanuele Sella in 2008 and Roman Kreuziger in 2012. Which of the riders will add their name to this list?

Weather

The sun will be out at the start of the stage, but there is a chance of rain for the finish. It really depends on how fast they ride the day! The wind isn’t particularly strong, but it is coming from the north. That means we’ll have a cross/headwind on the final climb, not great news for the attackers.

Tactics

Astana seem to hold most of the cards. Sky and FDJ used a lot of energy in today’s stage, Astana were the team with the numbers at the end of the stage. Now that they have the race lead, they’ll have to use two men to chase the morning move, leaving them five for the mountain.

Sky and FDJ won’t be happy simply allowing Astana to have multiple riders left for the finale. They will try and set a punishing pace on the early slopes of the big climb, hoping to dislodge some of the Astana domestiques. There will be a lot of pressure on Reichenbach and De La Cruz to last a long way up the climb. These two riders will be required to chase down any moves from Astana, before the big guns start to fire.

Contenders

Chris Froome – had a little test of his legs today and seemed to be happy with them. His attack managed to split the front group, leaving no Astana riders, something that many will have taken note of. It can be difficult for a rider after a period of altitude training, but today’s stage was a good sign for Froome. It also seems that he is interested in winning the race, that’s the first time we’ve seen him properly compete in 2018. Expect Sky to have their mountain train in full operation and Froome to put in a few attacks to try and distance his rivals.

Thibaut Pinot – like Froome, he seemed to enjoy today. The Frenchman decided to attack from a long way out, but Sky managed to pull him back. When Froome attacked, Pinot seemed to follow without looking in any difficulty. FDJ worked hard for the whole stage, a sign that Pinot must be a good form, expect more of the same in this stage. They will be happy to see a fast pace on the final climb and then it will be over to their leader. Can he beat Froome?

Miguel Angel Lopez – I was a little surprised by his positioning today, he was sitting too far back in the main group. When Froome attacked, Lopez simply wasn’t in a position to react. Was that a sign of poor legs? Maybe he was confident that his teammates could close any gaps. This climb looks great for him, especially with the altitude involved. Astana have an incredibly strong team, they will look to attack and make Froome and Pinot chase, using up some valuable energy. It will then be up to Lopez to see if he can break the others.

Pello Bilbao – after finishing 8th in the Basque Country, he would have been delighted with his first win for Astana. Looking at the final climb, it think it’s too hard for him and I can’t see him holding onto the race lead. He will be one of the last men to help Lopez.

Domenico Pozzovivo – the little man looks in good shape. Bahrain don’t have a lot of depth in this race, but Pozzovivo will be happy to follow the attacks of others. If he can stay with the front group when Froome and Pinot attack, he will be in a strong position to surprise them with a late attack. His body size is perfect for this finish.

George Bennett – considering he was hit by a car on Sunday, he was incredible today. The Kiwi is enjoying a very impressive season and he was able to follow the attack of Froome. If there are no lasting effects from his crash, he’ll be challenging in this stage. Judging by today’s stage, there is ever chance of him hanging around with the big boys.

Ivan Sosa – the next wonderkid from Colombia! The 20 year old was great today, finishing in 3rd place. This stage will be a huge test for him as he looks to compare himself to the best in the world. If he can manage to finish in the top 5, expect a long queue of teams interested in signing him.

Ben Hermans – the Belgian goes very well on tough climbs. He looked good today, quietly sitting in the bunch until very few were left. His form has been slowly building, it is very important for his team to see him do well in the Giro. Winning the stage will be difficult, but he could benefit from the big favourites looking at each other. This happened in Tirreno, where he managed to finish 5th in the Queen stage.

Fabio Aru – put in an attack today, but quickly went backwards. As I have mentioned before, it is very difficult to predict when Aru is going well, outside of a grand tour. I expect him to be better than he was today, he really should be competing for the win.

Prediction Time

This will be a brilliant finish to watch. Expect to see Team Sky destroy the peloton on the lower slopes, setting up a big attack from Chris Froome. He seems hungry for the win and I think he’ll get it.

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