For more than three weeks, the headlines have been dominated by the likes of Alberto Contador, Fabio Aru and Mikel Landa but it is time to forget all about the key protagonists of the Italian grand tour. The Tour de France looms on the horizon and with Sunday's start of the Criterium du Dauphiné, the preparation for the world's biggest race will kick off in earnest. The Grand Depart will take place in Utrecht in less than one month, and it is time to find out who's hot and who's not for the French grand tour when two of the biggest Tour favourites, Chris Froome and Vincenzo Nibali, go head to head in a highly anticipated battle in the Alps in the coming week.

 

While many of the world's best stage race riders have been involved in a hard fight for the maglia rosa on the Italian roads, most of the remaining part of that exclusive category of riders have meticulously prepared for their assault at the world's biggest race, the Tour de France which starts in less than a month from now. Some have already kicked back into action at races like Tour of California, Tour of Norway, Tour of Belgium, Bayern Rundfahrt and Tour de Luxembourg but the start of the Criterium du Dauphiné on Sunday marks the beginning of the string of crucial stage races that are usually used as the key warm-up for the world's biggest race.

 

The Criterium du Dauphiné plays a very unique role among that group of preparation races. Held in the French Alps, it is one of only two races - the smaller Route du Sud held in the Pyrenees being the other - to offer the riders the chance to test out the terrain that they will encounter during the month of July. In that sense, the race is the French analogue to the Italian Giro del Trentino and the Spanish Vuelta a Burgos as all three races are formidable tune-up events for the grand tours of their home country. All are held a few weeks prior to the start of the three-week races and all take place in mountainous parts of the countries that host the three grand tours.

 

While the riders are involved in heavy battles on the roads, race organizers take part in a completely different fight. For years, the Criterium du Dauphiné and Tour de Suisse have both claimed to offer the best preparation for the Tour, and while it is mostly a question of individual preference to find out which one comes out on top, it has been the source for plenty of discussion. The Swiss race is one day longer than its French counterpart and takes place one week closer to the start of the Tour, and riders all have different ideas as to which race forms the part of an ideal build-up. In that sense, the fight is comparable to the one between Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico which both claim to be the perfect preparation for Milan-Sanremo.

 

However, in recent years the French race has appeared to come out triumphant in the duel. The Dauphiné was first organized in 1947 when the eponymous local newspaper Dauphiné Libéré decided to put on a race in the Dauphiné region under the name of Criterium du Dauphiné Libéré. Taking place in the Alps just weeks before the Tour, it quickly grew to fame as an important preparation race and its links to the Grande Boucle were intimate right from the beginning. It is no surprise to see that all five-time winners of the Tour have all won the Dauphiné before going on to win the big one later in the summer.

 

For many years, it was the final big French race to be held outside the aegis of Tour de France organizer ASO. However, financial difficulties forced the paper to hand over the complete responsibility to the French giant in 2010 and the change saw the race name being abbreviated to the Criterium du Dauphiné.

 

Unsurprisingly, ASO has since tried to achieve some synergy between the Dauphiné and the Tour in a quest to attract more Tour contenders and that project has been a successful one. While the race has always tried to include key sections from the Tour route to give the riders the opportunity to tackle the course at race pace, ASO has taken that idea a step further. In 2011, they included the exact same time trial in Grenoble that would be contested one month later in the Tour, and in 2012 the riders climbed the Grand Colombier climb which was set to make its Tour debut later that season. In 2013, the main attraction was the possibility to climb the Alpe d'Huez and the subsequent Col de Sarenne which was a part of the crucial 18th stage of the Tour but last year ASO created little synergy between the two races. This year they have returned to the successful formula as three stages will be perfect test events for the Tour. The inclusion of a team time trial over a similar distance to the one that will feature in stage 9 of the French grand tour and stage 5 will even be completely identical to one of the key stages of the Tour. Finally riding the Montvernier switchbacks on the last day will be useful on stage 18 of the Tour de France when they will be taken on immediately before the finish line at Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne.    

 

The changes have seen more and more riders include the Criterium du Dauphiné while at the same time the Tour de Suisse has lost some of its status. The French race can even boast about the fact that since 2009 the Tour winner has finished in their top 10 one month prior to being celebrated in Paris (2009: Alberto Contador finished 3rd, 2010: Alberto Contador finished 2nd (and was later disqualified from his Tour win), 2011: Cadel Evans finished 2nd, 2012: Bradley Wiggins won, 2013: Chris Froome won, 2014: Vincenzo Nibali finished 7th). Actually, the last Tour winner not to race the Dauphiné was Lance Armstrong who deviated from his usual schedule featuring the Dauphiné by riding (and winning) the Tour de Suisse in 2001 before going on to beat Jan Ullrich in France a month later. This year the trend could continue as the race is set to feature two of the biggest favourites for the Tour as Chris Froome and Vincenzo Nibali. Andrew Talansky, Daniel Martin, Richie Porte, Wilco Kelderman, Romain Bardet, Jean-Christophe Peraud, Alejandro Valverde, Joaquim Rodriguez, Tejay van Garderen, Bauke Mollema, Mathias Frank, Rui Costa, Pierre Rolland, Daniel Navarro and Dominik Nerz are all expected to play leadership roles for their teams in July and will add further strength to the line-up while the Tour de Suisse organizers have to be content with a start list that mostly includes riders who are one step below the biggest favourites. Quintana and Contador are the main absentees in France as the former prefers to train in Colombia while the latter only has the shorter Route du Sud as a possible race between his Giro and Tour outings.

 

While the Criterium du Dauphiné is certainly good preparation which gives a lot of information on the form of some of the most important contenders, it is also important not to be too good too soon. The early calendar date means that the winner of the Dauphiné rarely goes on to win the Tour de France, and besides Wiggins and Froome who bucked the trend in 2012 and 2013 respectively, the only riders to make the double are Louison Bobet (1955), Jacques Anquetil (1963), Eddy Merckx (1971), Luis Ocana (1973), Bernard Thevenet (1975), Bernard Hinault (1979, 1981), Miguel Indurain (1995) and Lance Armstrong (2002 and 2003), the names on that list clearly indicating that it requires something special to make the rare feat.

 

However, the Dauphiné is more than just Tour preparation and as a WorldTour event with important points at stake, it has probably even got more important in recent years. The last few seasons have seen some of the best climbers from the Giro travel directly to France to benefit maximally from their good post-Grand Tour condition. In 2011, Joaquin Rodriguez went on from finishing 4th in the Giro to capture two stage wins and an overall 5th place in the Dauphiné while in 2012 his teammate Daniel Moreno came from a 20th place finish in the Giro to win two stages and finish 13th overall in France. It was Elia Viviani and Samuel Sanchez who made use of their Giro condition to win a stage and last year, Wilco Kelderman came directly from the Giro to finish 4th in the Dauphiné. This year the trend is less obvious – probably because the inclusion of a team time trial means that the entire rosters strongly resemble the ones for the Tour – but at the moment riders like Benat Intxausti, Ilnur Zakarin, Ivan Basso, Simon Gerrans, Simon Geschke, Sacha Modolo and Luka Mezgec who all played prominent roles in the Italian grand tour, are all possible starters at the time of writing.

 

Last year’s race was one of the most memorable editions in recent years as it included lots of drama and a dramatic turnaround on the final day before Andrew Talansky took a breakthrough overall victory in one of the hardest WorldTour stage races. After he had stamped his authority on the race by beating Alberto Contador in both the opening time trial and first mountain stage, Chris Froome crashed one day before the race was set to be decided with two consecutive mountain stages. Suffering from the injuries, he was unable to keep up with Contador who rode himself into the yellow jersey in the penultimate stage. However, a surprisingly weak Tinkoff-Saxo team was unable to control the short, intensive final stage and when a big group with GC contenders like Andrew Talansky and Jurgen Van den Broeck had gone clear, Contador had to try to make a big comeback on his own. He got close but ran out of metres and so had to settle for second behind Talansky while Van den Broeck finished third. Talansky will be back in an attempt to defend his title but Contador and Van den Broeck who both did the Giro, will be absent from this year’s race.

 

The course

When the race was still organized by the newspaper Dauphiné Libéré, the build-up of the course followed a fixed format. A short prologue kicked off the event and was followed by two easier stages of which one suited the sprinters while the other took in some more hilly terrain. Wednesday was the day of a long time trial of more than 40km while the race was rounded off by four consecutive stages in the mountains. Often the Thursday and Saturday stages included a mountaintop finish while the Friday and Sunday stages were more suited to breakaways.

 

When ASO took over the event, they started to deviate from that format and even though they have mostly followed the tradition of having both a prologue and a long time trial, they have made the road stages a lot more varied. However, during the last few years they have also started to shake up the time trials. In 2013 the race didn't start with its usual prologue and last year it broke with the tradition of having a long time trial. This year the Tour de France will barely feature any individual time trialling and the main timed event will be a team time trial. Hence, it is no surprise that this year’s race features no individual time trial at all and instead there will be a team time trial of a distance that is similar to the one found in the French grand tour. There is no doubt that the Tour de France suits the climbers and with four very hard stages in the mountains at the end of the race, it will be no different for the Dauphiné. In that sense, nothing has changed in the French race which has always had at least three big mountain stages and this year all four stages even include a summit finish. The remaining stages are all rolling and as always, the pure sprinters have no reason to travel to the Alps for the Dauphiné. The hilly terrain suits the attackers and the sprinters that also excel in the classics.

 

Stage 1:

After the 2013 race started with a road stage, the Criterium du Dauphiné was back to tradition in 2014 when it kicked off with a short time trial. This year there will be no individual time trial at all and so the race will again start with a road stage. Like in 2013, it won’t be a day for the GC riders to make their mark and instead the strong sprinters will relish a unique chance to go for the lead in one of the most mountainous races on the calendar.

 

At just 131.5km, the opening stage is a very short affair that is held almost entirely on a circuit in Albertville. Starting in Ugine, the riders head south along flat roads to the finishing city where they will do a small circuit on the southeasterly outskirts, with the category 4 Cote d’Esserts-Blay (1.4km, 6.9%) at the 17km mark being the only small challenge.

 

Back in Albertville, the riders will cross the finish line for the first time after 33km of racing and will then do one lap of a big 19.5km circuit. It is mostly flat but includes the day’s main challenge, the category 3 Cote du Villard (1.2km, 8.7%). After the top, there will be no descent and instead the riders will head almost straight onto the category 4 Cote du Cruet (2.3km, 4.9%) before they descend to flat roads that lead back to the finish.

 

The final part of the stage consists of 5 laps of a 15.5km circuit that is almost identical to the big circuit the riders have already done once. The only difference is the fact that the riders won’t go up the Cote du Cruet after the Cote du Villard. Instead, they will descend back to the flat roads that lead to the finish. The summit of the climb comes 12km before the riders cross the line.

 

A total of six passages of the Cote du Villard in such a short stage will make this race pretty hard and this won’t be a stage for the pure sprinters. The small ascent is a perfect launch pad for attacks and we can expect a pretty fast and aggressive race. However, the GC teams won’t allow anyone to get a bigger gap and there are a few sprinters who can survive this kind of climb. This stage and a stint in yellow are some of their big goals in this year and they will do their utmost to control the race. A strong break has a chance but the most likely outcome is that the fast finishers who can overcome this kind of small climbs, will battle for the stage win in Albertville.

 

Albertville has often hosted a stage start in the Criterium du Dauphiné but it has not been used as a finishing city for more than a decade. It last hosted the finish of a major stage race in 1998 when Jan Ullrich bounced back from his breakdown earlier in the race by winning a tough mountain stage of the Tour de France.

 

 

 

 

Stage 2:

The Criterium du Dauphiné is in the category of mountainous WorldTour races that leave very little room for pure sprinters. Like the Vuelta al Pais Vasco and the Volta a Catalunya, it doesn’t offer many kilometres of flat roads and so it is no surprise that the major Tour de France sprinters always skip the French race. Instead, they head to the Tour de Suisse or the sprint festival at the Ster ZLM Toer and leave the room for other fast finishers to shine in France.

 

The stronger sprinters who can climb well, usually have several opportunities in the Dauphiné and it won’t be any different in 2015. After the opening stage, they will get another chance in stage 3 which could actually have been an opportunity for the pure sprinters too. Like any other Dauphiné stage, it includes a significant amount of climbing but as it all comes pretty early in the stage, the pace may be so slow that even the heavy guys would have had a chance to stay in contact.

 

The 173km stage brings the riders from Le Bourgec-du-Lac to Villars-les-Dombes in the flat western part of the region. The race gets off to a very tough start as the riders will go straight up the category 2 Col du Chat (2.8km, 6.8%). After a short rolling section and a descent, the riders get to a flat section before the riders hit the bottom of the first major climb of the race. The category 1 Col de Cuvery (8.7km, 6.7%) is a very regular climb with a steep penultimate kilometre that averages 9.2%.

 

The summit comes at the 74km mark and leads to a long, gradually descending section which ends after around 115km of racing. From there, the road is completely flat as the riders travel in a southwesterly direction to the finish in Villars-les-Dombes. In the final five kilometres, there is no elevation difference at all.

 

The sprinters have three opportunities in this race and with the final climb summiting 99km from the finish, this stage is probably their best chance. There’s a tough climb right from the start but otherwise the early part of the stage is pretty easy and so it should be possible for the sprint teams to control the break. The main climb comes early in the race and so it will probably be tackled at a pretty slow pace. This means that the sprint teams will be pretty intact when they get to the flat final part and so they will have no trouble bringing it all back together for a big bunch sprint.

 

In recent years, Villars-les-Dombes has hosted a few stage starts but it has not hosted a stage finish for more than a decade.

 

 

 

 

Stage 3:

For the first time in recent history, there will be no individual time trial in the Criterium du Dauphiné and instead the only time trialling will come in the team time trial on day 2. The race hasn’t had such a stage since 1980 but when it was announced that the stage 9 team time trial would be the only important TT in this year’s Tour, it was always an obvious choice for ASO to skip the traditional ITT in favour of a TTT. Unsurprisingly, they have designed a route that strongly resembles the one that will be found in the Tour, both when it comes to distance and terrain. Its inclusion has had a strong impact on the selection policy of the teams who have not only sent their leaders to the French preparation race but have designed entire rosters that strongly resemble the ones that will be found in the Tour later his summer.

 

At 24.5km, the stage is a few kilometres shorter than the 28km test in the Tour de France and it is a bit less hilly than the Tour TTT which ends at the top of a pretty tough climb. The Dauphiné stage brings the riders from Roanne to Montagny and can be split into two parts. The first section is mainly flat and only includes a small climb and subsequent descent. After 14km of racing, the riders get to the intermediate time check and after another short section of flat roads, the remaining part is almost all uphill. The road never gets very steep but the entire final part consists of a steady climbing effort to the finish in Montagny. There are a few sharp turns along the way and a few technical challenges in the early part in Roanne but otherwise the stage is not too difficult from a technical point of view.

 

Team time trials over such a short distance rarely create any big time gaps and it is unlikely to be any different for this stage. The second half may be entirely uphill but the amount of climbing is not significant. As all riders in this race are pretty strong climbers, it won’t be a major challenge for anyone and instead it will be the sheer amount of time trialling power that will decide the race. The course should suit the powerful teams that usually dominate the team time trials. With four tough mountain stages to come, it is unlikely to have a big effect on the final GC but it will be important from a psychological point of view, mostly because it is the big dress rehearsal for the Tour de France team time trial.

 

Montagny has not hosted a major bike race in recent years.

 

 

 

 

Stage 4:

While the second half of the race is completely reserved for climbers and GC riders, the first half is for the sprinters. The GC riders have to be on their toes in the team time trial but otherwise the first four days are all about survival. The final opportunity for the fast finishers comes in stage 4 which is again tailor-made for the kind of sprinters who head to the Dauphiné.

 

At 228km the stage is unusually long for a race that is usually characterized by relatively short stages. It starts in Anneyron in the flat westerly part of the region and brings the riders in a southeasterly direction to Sisteron which is located on the outskirts of the major climbs, meaning that the terrain gradually gets hillier. The first 100km have some small rolling hills but are mostly flat.

 

At this point, the riders hit a long, gradual uphill section that culminates with the category 3 Col de Lescou (3.9km, 4.7%). It leads straight to the bottom of the category 4 Col de Pre-Guittard which summits at the 127.5km mark. The subsequent descent leads to another gradual uphill section which ends after 170km if racing. From there, the roads are very slightly descending all the way to the finish in Sisteron but have a small sting in its tail. The category 4 Cote de la Marquise (1.3km, 6.7%) summits 12.5km from the finish and is followed by another small climb before the riders get back onto flat roads. There’s a small uphill section between the 3km to 2km to go marks but otherwise the final part is flat.

 

The roads in this long stage are not completely flat but the climbs are all pretty easy and should do nothing to challenge the sprinters in this race. The late category 4 climb is close to the finish but is too easy to make a difference. It’s a long stage and it requires a fair bit of work to chase down the early break but as it is the final chance for the sprinters and many will have their eyes on the upcoming mountain stages, there is little doubt that it will all be decided in another bunch sprint before the fast finishers slot into an anonymous role for the final part of the race – if they don’t head home after this stage.

 

Sisteron last hosted a stage finish in this race in 2004 when Stuart O’Grady beat George Hincapie in a two-rider sprint on a day when a breakaway made it to the finish. It has often featured in Paris-Nice, most recently in 2012 when Luis Leon Sanchez beat Jens Voigt in a two-rider sprint. In 2008, Carlos Barredo was the strongest from a breakaway, in 2001 Alex Zülle narrowly held off the peloton, in 2000 Matteo Tosatto made a similar performance and in 1999 it was Jacky Durand who denied the sprinters in Sisteron.

 

 

 

 

Stage 5:

Since ASO took over the reins in the Criterium du Dauphiné, they have made stronger links between the courses for the Tour de France and its traditional preparation race. However, in the first few years they have only had one stage that was completely identical to one that would feature in the French grand tour – in 2011 when the race included the exact same time trial that would decide the Tour later that year.

 

This year they have again decided to include a stage that is identical to one that will feature in the Tour. After four days  during which only the team time trial is expected to have created any time differences between the overall contenders, the GC battle will heat up with the first of four tough stages in the mountains. Stage 5 is probably the second hardest of the quartet, is identical to stage 17 of this year’s Tour and will give the first clear indication of who’s going to win the race.

 

The stage brings the riders over 161km from Digne-les-Bains on the outskirts of the Alps to a summit finish on the category 2 climb of Pra Loup. In the first part, the riders will head along mainly flat roads in a southeasterly direction before they get to the first climb, the category 3 Col des Leques (6km, 5.3%) which summits at the 24.5km mark. From there, the riders will travel in a northerly direction for the rest of the stage as they head into the Alps and hillier terrain.

 

The first part of this section is made up of two relatively easy climbs and subsequent descents. First the riders will tackle the category 3 Col de Toutes Aures (6.1km, 3.1%) and then they face the Col de la Colle-Saint-Michel (11km, 5.2%). The summit of the latter is located 65km from the finish and is followed by a short descent and a gradually rising road that leads to the bottom of the main challenge, the category 1 Col d’Allos (14km, 5.5%). It’s a pretty irregular climb with a few steep kilometres along the way, mainly near the top where the final 6km are particularly hard.

 

The summit is located 22km from the finish and the final part is first made up of a very long and pretty technical descent that lead straight to the bottom of the Pra Loup climb. It’s a relatively short 6.2km ascent with an average gradient of 6.5%. The second and the fourth kilometres are pretty easy but otherwise the climb has a gradient of 7-9%.

 

This is an important stage for several reasons. First of all the fact that the stage is identical to one that will feature in the Tour de France, means that it is one of the main drawcards that has prompted the Tour contenders to include the Dauphiné on the schedule. Secondly, it will be the scene of the first big battle among the GC contenders in this race. There is little doubt that the main contenders want to fight for the stage win and we can expect Sky to control the stage firmly. They are likely to tap out the usual brutal tempo on the penultimate climb before they set up Chris Froome for an attack on the final ascent. As it’s pretty short, the time differences won’t be very big but it will give a clear indication of who’s going to win this year’s edition of the Dauphiné.

 

The final climb of Pra Loup has only been used a stage finish in the Tour de France twice, most famously in 1975 when Bernard Thevenet won the stage on a day that marked the end to Eddy Merckx’s reign. It was used again in 1980 when Jos De Schoenmacker won the stage. It has only very rarely been used for professional bike races.

 

 

 

 

Stage 6:

The Criterium du Dauphiné is known as a mountainous race in the Alps but not every hilly stage takes place in the high mountains. The race usually also includes a number of stages that are too hard for the sprinters but too easy for the GC riders to make a difference. Stage 6 of a the 2015 edition is a prime example of such a stage as it barely includes any flat roads and has an uphill finish but the climbing is not severe enough to create major differences between the best riders.

 

The stage brings the riders over 183km from Saint-Bonnet-en-Champsaur to a summit finish on the Cote 2000 climb in Villard-de-Lans close to Grenoble. The first 60km are held in rolling terrain with numerous smaller climbs, including the category 3 ascents Rampe du Motty (2.3km, 8.3%) and Cote du Barrage de Sautet (2.2km, 4.4%) respectively. Despite the many ups and downs, there are no longer climbs until the riders get to the category 2 Col de la Croix-Haute (5.6km, 5.9%) which leads almost straight onto the lower slopes of the category 3 Col de Grimone (4.1km, 6.1%) whose summit is located at the 75km mark.

 

The riders now tackle the easiest part of the stage which is a long, gradual descent to the city of Die where the difficult finale starts. The category 1 Col du Rousset (13.8km, 5.4%) is the biggest obstacle of the day and has its summit located just 51km from the finish. It is a regular climb with constant gradients of around 5% and no steep parts. After a short descent, the terrain again gets lumpy with numerous smaller climbs of which none are categorized. The stage has a nasty sting in its tail as it ends at the top of the category 3 Cote 2000 (2.2km, 6.2%). The final kilometre has an average gradient of 6.9% and includes a very tough first section of around 300m with a gradient of more than 10% before it gets significantly easier for the final 700m where the gradient is around 4%.

 

The hilly terrain means that this stage will be very difficult to control and it requires a strong team to bring it back together for an uphill sprint on the final climb. That ascent is more for the puncheurs than the real climbers and since there are no bonus seconds, the GC riders have to real incentive to keep it together for a battle between the main riders. Furthermore, bigger time gaps have opened up and this means that several riders will now be allowed to attack Unless a puncheur like Alejandro Valverde sets his sights on a stage win and uses his strong Movistar team to control the race, this should be a stage for a strong breakaway of good climbers and puncheurs who excel in this kind of terrain. For the GC riders, it will be important to stay attentive in the finale as the explosive riders may gain a few second on a climb where small splits will definitely occur.

 

Villard-de-Lans last hosted a stage of the race in 2003 when Iban Mayo beat David Millar and Lance Armstrong in the partly uphill prologue. One year later the Tour de France visited the stage on a memorable day when Lance Armstrong beat Ivan Basso, Jan Ullrich, Andreas Klöden and Levi Leipheimer in an 5-rider uphill sprint on the Cote 2000.

 

 

 

 

 

Stage 7:

Traditionally the penultimate stage has been the queen stage in the Criterium du Dauphine and it won’t be any different in 2015. The final four stages all include uphill finishes but their difficulty is very varying. The finish on the category 1 Saint-Gervains Mont Blanc is clearly the toughest and as it comes at the end of a stage that includes another four category 1 and a single category 3 climb, the scene is set for a huge battle between the GC contenders and climbers on what will be a brutal day in the Alps.

 

At 155km, stage 7 is a short affair but that doesn’t mean that it will be an easy challenge. The course is up or down and includes a huge amount of climbing over the relatively short distance. The first 27.5km are almost completely flat and only includes a very small climb in the early part and those are almost the only flat kilometres of the stage. When the riders hit the lower slopes of then category 1 Col de Tamié (8.5km, 6.4%), the hostilities start and from there, the riders will have no room to recover.

 

After the opening challenge, the riders will tackle a short descent before they get to the category 1 Col de la Forclaz (8.1km, 7.8%) which is known as a very hard climb. The average gradient is slightly deceptive as the seventh kilometre is all downhill. In fact, the gradient rarely drops below 8% and the second, fifth and eighth kilometre all have double-digit gradients.

 

After the descent and a short flat section, the riders hit the category 1 Col de la Croix Fry (11.2km, 7%) which is a very regular climb with just a short easier section at the midpoint. After the summit, the short category 3 Cold des Aravis (4.3km, 5%) will be the final challenge before the riders get to an easier part of the course. The descent is followed by a gradual uphill section and another descent before they get to the bottom of the final double climb Cote des Amerands and Saint-Gervains Mont Blanc that are both of the first category.

 

The first climb is simply brutal as it averages 11.2% over 2.7km but then there will be a chance to recover during the next 3km that are either flat or downhill. Then the final 7km climb starts and it has an average gradient of 7.7%. The first 5km are pretty regular at 7-9% before the riders get to the harder final 1.5km where the gradient is 9-10.1%.

 

As the final stage of last year’s race proves, short, mountainous stages can be very hard to control and there is little doubt that many riders will be keen to attack in this hilly terrain. We can expect a very tough start with numerous attacks and there is a big chance that a strong group of climbers gets clear on the first climb. Depending on the GC situation, they have a great chance of making it to the finish. However, this is also the most prestigious mountain stage of the race and there is no doubt that Chris Froome would love to win this one. Sky are strong enough to bring it back together for the final double climb, especially as the second half of the race is not very hard. The most likely outcome is that the race will be decided by the GC riders on the final climb which is hard enough to do considerable damage. At the end of this stage, the overall winner of the race is very likely to be known.

 

The final climb has not been used in a major bike race in recent years.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stage 8:

The Criterium du Dauphiné is never decided before the riders get to the very end of the race as the final stage is never a ceremonial affair. In fact, it is always a short, intensive affair in some very hilly terrain. That’s no different in 2015 even though this year’s final leg is a bit easier than it has been in recent year. It may have a summit finish but there are no very long climbs and so the race is unlikely to be turned upside down in the way it did 12 months ago. For the Tour de France contenders, it will be another great chance to test a part of the Tour route as the Lacets de Montvernier climb will feature both in this stage and in the final part of stage 18 in July.

 

At 156.5km, it is another very short stage that brings the rider in a southerly direction from Saint-Gervais Mont-Blanc to Modane-Valfrejus. Most of the stage takes place on the outskirts of the Alps, meaning that there are no big climbs. Instead, it is a lumpy day with several smaller climbs. After a mostly flat start, the riders get to the top of the category 2 Cote d’Hery-Sur-Ugine (2.7km, 6.1%) after 25.5km of racing before they descend to a longer flat section. Along the way they will tackle the two small climbs Cote d’Aiton (category 4, 1.4km, 6.7%), Cote de Saint-Georges-des-Hurtieres (category 3, 4.6km, 5.4%).

 

The climbing gets a bit tougher when the peloton gets to the category 1 Lacets de Montvernier (3.4km, 8.2%) which is a short and very regular climb with a constant gradient of 8-9%. After a short descent, the road is uphill for the final 40km. The first part is just a gradual rise before the riders get to the category 3 Cote de Saint-André (3km, 7%) whose summit is located just 14.5km from the finish. Just a few kilometres later, they take on the final ascent to the finish in Modane Valfrejus. It is a category 1 climb with a length of 8.4km and an average gradient of 5.7%. The first three kilometres are easy at 3-5% but then the going gets tougher with four kilometres averaging between 6% and 9.6%. The seventh kilometre is the hardest at 9.6% before the terrain again gets significantly easier and the final 400m are even slightly descending.

 

Most would love to have a repeat of last year’s dramatic final stage but that is unlikely to happen. This stage is much easier to control and the battle between the GC riders will probably be reserved for the final climb. However, the racing will still be very aggressive. This is the final chance for a lot of riders to earn themselves a spot for the Tour de France and depending on the situation in the GC and the internal hierarchy between the best riders, there is a big chance that a breakaway will be allowed to decide the stage. Hence, everybody wants to escape in what will be a tough start to the stage. The GC riders will decide the race on the final climb which is not very tough. However, the steep middle section is hard enough to make a difference and even though the road is almost flat for the final 1400m, things could change right until the very final moment of the 2015 Criterium du Dauphiné

 

The climb to Modane Valfrejus has not hosted a stage finish of a major bike race in recent years.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The favourites

The Criterium du Dauphiné is always highly anticipated as it usually offers the first chance to gauge the form of the Tour contenders. Last year the excitement was bigger than it had been for a while as the race offered what was the first really big match between the two riders that most expected to battle it out for Tour glory: Chris Froome and Alberto Contador.

 

This year the pre-race hype has been less. In 2015, the Tour de France is expected to be a four-horse battle between Froome, Contador, Vincenzo Nibali and Nairo Quintana and as neither Contador no Quintana are at the start in the Dauphiné, the race doesn’t have the same status as a big dress rehearsal. Furthermore, Nibali is not expected to be at his best in this race and so the race won’t be too indicative about what we can expect in July.

 

It is no new situation that the biggest favourites for the Tour will clash in the Dauphiné but the importance of the result has changed over the last few years. In the past they tended to use the race as mere preparation and were often far off the pace but recently the race itself has become a lot more important. Even though both all contenders will underline that they are mainly here to prepare for later, there is no doubt that most will be gunning for victory. Especially the mental aspect can't be overestimated and especially Froome will head into the race in search of an important boost of confidence.

 

The Dauphiné is one of the most mountainous races on the calendar but the race is not always won by the strongest climber. In fact, the inclusion of a long time trial – usually the longest in a WorldTour race outside the grand tour category – has made it a race for the really versatile stage race specialists. That is reflected in the list of winners. In fact, Alejandro Valverde’s remarkable comeback in 2009 marks the only edition in which the winner of the race has not finished in the top 4 in the time trial.

 

With the recent changes to the course, the nature of the race is set to change. Already last year the course barely had any time trialling and even though later winner Andrew Talansky was among the best in the opening prologue, he didn’t win the race by virtue of that performance. As this year’s race doesn’t feature any time trialling at all, the 2015 event will be won by the strongest climber. Apart from the four summit finishes, only the team time trial may create differences between the best riders and as time gaps in a short TTT are usually pretty small, it will be the very hard second of the race that decides the race. The TTT will be more of a dress rehearsal for the Tour de France than an important part of the battle for the Dauphiné victory.

 

It is a strange fact that many claim that the Tour de France course doesn’t suit Chris Froome because there is no long time trial. Along the same lines, many will probably postulate that it will be hard for Froome to win this year’s edition of the Dauphiné which will come down almost only to climbing skills. However, Froome has repeatedly shown that he is the best climber in the world. When asked to assess Froome’s chances, Alberto Contador surprisingly asked whether Froome is not a climber. On several occasions, the Brit has proved that no one is able to match him when he is at 100% of his capabilities. Of course his chances would have been bigger if there had also been a long time trial but there is no reason to suggest that he won’t shine on a course that includes lots of climbing and gradual climbs which suit him well.

 

Nonetheless, there is reason to approach this year’s Dauphiné with more excitement than usual. In fact, Froome has not been at his best since he crashed in last year’s Dauphiné. Of course nobody ever got the chance to see how strong he was in last year’s Tour but the last time he showed his highest level in a professional race was 12 months ago on the Col du Beal on stage 2 of the traditional warm-up race. In the Vuelta, he was still coming back from injury and was clearly far from his best condition which was evident in the mountains and especially in the time trial.

 

In 2013 and 2014, Froome was famously known for his ability to always race for the win and if he had not been set back by illness or injuries, he was virtually unbeatable in stage races. This year things have been different. He managed to win the Ruta del Sol after an exciting duel with Alberto Contador. At the time, it looked like a remarkable feat but with Contador’s below-par showing in the spring season, that win has now lost a bit of its prestige. He fell ill before Tirreno-Adriatico which explains his disastrous performance in the Volta a Catalunya. However, he also came back from illness in that race in 2014 and back then he was at least a contender for the overall win. This year he delivered his worst performance in a WorldTour stage race since he emerged as a grand tour contender in 2011.

 

What must really be cause for concern in the Sky camp is his performance in the Tour de Romandie. In 2013 and 2014, he dominated that race but this year he only managed to make it onto the podium with a small margin. He had had no issues in the build-up to that race apart from a small crash in Fleche Wallonne which didn’t have any serious consequences. He may have done most of the work in the queen stage but he was unable to ride away from most of his rivals like he has usually done in the past. His poor time trial was striking and as it comes at the end of a strong of below-par performance, it’s hard not to be a little worried on behalf of the 2013 Tour de France champion.

 

After the Tour de Romandie, Sky claimed that Froome had been better than he was 12 months ago but the results clearly didn’t support that suggestion. Since then, Froome has had his usual preparation on Mount Teide in Tenerife where he has followed his successful formula. That has always allowed him to arrive at the Dauphiné in excellent condition and now it is time for him to prove that he is back at his best level. If he fails to show his usual level in France next week, it is hard to believe that he will be at 100% in July.

 

However, Froome knows how to prepare for a big race and his preparation for the Dauphiné has never failed. Last year he was amazingly strongly until he crashed in stage 6. In fact, his attacks on the Col du Beal in stage 2 were so impressive that Contador described them as the strongest he had ever seen. To make things even more remarkable, they were launched at a time where he had single-handedly set the pace for most of the stage. Those are the kind of performances that prove that Froome is the best climber in the race. He still has to prove that he is back at that level but if he is, no one will be able to beat him and so Froome has to be the big favourite to win the race.

 

Apart from Bradley Wiggins, the only rider to have one the race twice in recent years is Alejandro Valverde who returns to the scene of his 2008 and 2009 wins after a one-year absence. Like many of his rivals, the Spaniard hasn’t raced since the classics and he arrives at the start on the back of a solid block of training for the Tour de France.

 

In 2008, Valverde laid the foundations for his overall victory by taking a surprise win in a very hilly time trial. In 2009, he made a remarkable comeback from a poor time trial to win the race by virtue of a fabulous performance on the Mont Ventoux. That shows that he is able to win the race even when it includes lots of time trialling but there is no doubt that he will benefit strongly from the absence of the ITT. Even though he defends himself well in TTs – especially on hilly courses – he will always lose plenty of time to Froome in the individual tests. With four summit finishes, this year’s route is tailor-made for the Movistar captain.

 

Valverde is a bit hard to gauge when it comes to his performance in preparation races. Before he came back from suspension, he won the Dauphiné twice but since he returned from his ban, he has held more back in his build-up to the Tour. In 2013, he was not at his best in the Dauphiné and last year he failed to win the Route du Sud even though he was the overwhelming favorite.

 

This year he may have an extra incentive to go full gas in the Dauphiné. He is set to play a support role for Quintana in the Tour de France but there is no doubt that he still dreams about that elusive podium spot. An overall victory – or a second-place behind Froome – would be a signal that would be hard for the Movistar management to ignore. It will be important for him to go into the race with some kind of shared leadership role as he may be forced to wait for Quintana who could come into troubles on the cobbles. It remains to be seen how Movistar distribute the leadership but Valverde will be keen to send a signal in the Alps next week. In the classics, he proved that he is still not slowing down – in fact he was maybe stronger than he has ever been. He may lose a bit of time in the team time trial as Movistar have a team mostly made up of climbers but as said this race will be decided in the mountains where Valverde will come to the fore.

 

Andrew Talansky goes into this race as the defending champion. Many claim that he won last year’s race more because of tactics than strong legs. Of course he wasn’t at Froome’s or Contador’s level and so the circumstances ended up in his favour. However, he was not far behind in the two big summit finishes before the final stage and he was the driving force in the break that set him up for the win.

 

That performance proves that the American is an excellent climber who is not far off the mark of the very best. One year earlier he was ill in the early part of the race but when he had recovered in the second half he was the best of the rest behind Froome. Unfortunately, Talansky is rarely at his best in the rest of the season and this year he has again had a poor spring. However, he always seems to time his condition for the Dauphiné and the Tour de France and we still don’t know how far his potential can get him. This year he is likely to have taken another step up and he should again be one of the strongest in the race. Of course he would have benefited from the inclusion of a time trial but last year he won a race that was decided in the mountains and he can definitely do so again. There’s a small question regarding his preparation as he missed the Tour of California due to illness but in the American time trial and road race championships he proved that he is on track for another great performance in France this summer.

 

Vincenzo Nibali is one of the big question marks for this year’s race. The defending Tour de France champion arrives in France on the back of a high-altitude training camp just like he did in 2014. Back then, he was off the pace in the Dauphiné but was flying by the time we got to the Tour de France.

 

This time we could see a similar pattern. Like last year, Nibali has been unusually poor in the spring season – much to his regret as he had hoped to achieve better results. In the past he was known for his consistency but he no longer seems to have the motivation to make the sacrifices that are needed to be competitive all year. However, there is no reason to suggest that he won’t be at 100% in the Tour.

 

The main question is whether he will already be good enough to win the Dauphiné. We doubt that is the case. During his training camp, he has mainly focused on quantity and has not done too much intensity work. He will do that kind of stuff when he heads to San Pellegrino for another camp after the Dauphiné just like he did last year. Hence, we expect the French race to come a bit too early for Nibali and we would be surprised if he ends up on the top step of the podium. On the other hand, he has won preparation races in the past – the 2013 Giro del Trentino is the prime example – and he is one of the select few who has the level to potentially challenge Froome. Hence, he deserves to be mentioned pretty prominently among potential winners of the race.

 

One rider who will really be pleased with the absence of a time trial is Romain Bardet. The Frenchman may have done the time trial of his life in the Tour de Romandie but that doesn’t change the fact that the discipline remains his main weakness. This year’s course for the Dauphiné suits him down to the ground and offers him a unique chance to win one of his home races.

 

No one knows what Bardet is capable of as he is still work in progress. Last year’s Tour de France proved that he has the potential to become one of the very best climbers in the world and this year things suggest that he is riding at an even higher level. He didn’t get his season off to the best start but after he returned to competition in the Giro del Trentino, he rode strongly in the Italian race, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and the Tour de Romandie where he was clearly one of the best in the queen stage. Last year he was riding really well in Dauphiné and if it hadn’t been for a bad start, he would probably have finished on the podium. He showed good condition when he returned to competition last weekend where he was a key element in Alexis Vuillermoz’ win at the GP de Plumelec. He has confirmed that he is riding better than last year and so it will be no surprise if he ends up among the very best in the Dauphiné.

 

Talansky is not the only Cannondale-Garmin card. This year the American will share the leadership with Daniel Martin who will return to the Tour de France after a one-year absence and to the Dauphiné for the first time since 2012. The Irishman is more of a classics rider than a stage race contender and he has done nothing to hide that he prefers the one-day events. However, he has done well in multi-day events too which his overall win in the 2013 Volta a Catalunya proves. His main weakness is his poor time trialling but with no TT in this year’s French race he should be a strong contender.

 

Martin has had an unfortunate season as he crashed in his two biggest goals at the classics and completed the Tour de Romandie with a broken rib. He will be determined to bounce back during the summer and he knows how to time his condition. In the Tour, he is likely to leave GC responsibilities to Talansky and focus on stage wins but in Dauphiné the course should allow him to come to the fore in the overall classification too.

 

One rider who is always riding strongly at this time of the year is Rui Costa. In fact, the Portuguese has won the Tour de Suisse three years in a row and he could write his name deeper into the history books by taking a fourth victory in the Swiss event. However, he has decided to deviate from his usual schedule and will be at the start in France instead.

 

Costa is no pure climber and the less steep climbs in Switzerland definitely suit him better. However, the Alpine passes are not too bad either. Unlike many of his key rivals, he has proved that he is always in very good shape at this time of the year. In fact, he has had his best spring season yet and even though he failed to deliver his usual third place in the Tour de Romandie, he had his best ever classics campaign. We doubt that he will ever be on the podium in a grand tour but at a time when people usually lack a few percent, his consistency should see him deliver another excellent performance.

 

Tejay van Garderen once lacked a bit of climbing skills to become a real contender in the biggest races and so it probably didn’t do him any favour that his fifth place in a time trial heavy edition of the Tour de France suddenly created enormous expectations for him. However, he has improved his skills in the mountains significantly and last year’s Tour de France clearly showed that he is now able to be up there with the best.

 

This year he aims to improve on last year’s performance in the French grand tour and he will again be the leader of the BMC team. Last year he rode strongly in France but he entered that event on the back of a poor performance in the Dauphiné. That was definitely not part of the plan but the build-up of his form had been delayed by a crash in the Tour de Romandie. This year he has had an incident-free build-up and should be riding a lot better. Furthermore, he has been strong in the spring, winning the Volta a Catalunya queen stage after he had crashed out of GC contention. He was off the pace in Pais Vasco whose steep climbs don’t suit him. He should find the longer climbs in the Alps more to his liking. Of course he would have preferred a time trial but as he is part of one of the strongest teams, he may go into the mountains with a head start after the TTT. That could allow him to ride defensively in the mountains which should suit him well.

 

Last year Wilco Kelderman finished fourth in this race. Back then, he arrived in France on the back of great Giro d’Italia. This year the conditions are completely different as he is aiming for the Tour de France and so has been training at altitude in Sierra Nevada. Kelderman’s performances in 2014 suggest that he has the potential to become one of the greatest stage race riders and he was expected to confirm his progress in 2015. However, he has had a poor spring season – partly due to illness just before the classics – and so he has not had any major results. Last year he was not riding really well in his preparation races and so it remains to be seen whether he has the level to contend for the victory. However, he targets a good result and if he is close to his best, he will be one of the strongest.

 

His former teammate Bauke Mollema has changed his usual schedule and will now do the Dauphiné instead of the Tour de Suisse. He has finished on the podium in Switzerland twice in a row and he is usually very good at this time of the year. However, things could be different this year. Mollema faded in last year’s Tour de France and this year he seems to hold a little more back. In the Tour of Norway he was far from his usual level unlike last year when he won a stage. It may be hard for him to turn things around already for the Dauphiné but he should be ready for the Tour de France as he has had a solid spring season that culminated with a second place behind Quintana in Tirreno-Adriatico.

 

It is a bit of a surprise that Mathias Frank is riding in France. The IAM captain is the Tour de France captain of his team which naturally places a lot of emphasis on the Tour de Suisse which is their home race. It would be natural for them to have their leader ride in Switzerland where he finished third 12 months ago. However, he has decided to focus fully on the Tour and in that context the Dauphiné suits him better. He has had a poor start to the year but last year he proved that he can be up there with the best at the WorldTour level. He has just finished a training camp at altitude and claims that his condition is finally there. It should be time for Frank to turn things around.

 

Jean-Christophe Peraud finished second overall in last year’s Tour de France but he didn’t shine in the Dauphiné. In fact he was far off the pace in his preparation race and it would be a bit of a surprise if he has a different approach in 2015. He has never been riding very well in his preparation races and there is no reason to change a winning formula. Furthermore, Peraud has had a very bad spring season and at his age, it is always a question whether he can return to his best level.

 

Orica-GreenEDGE claim that they are mainly here for stage wins but it would be a bad idea not to go for a GC result with Simon and Adam Yates. Both are gearing up for the Tour de France and they should find this course with no individual time trialling to their liking. Adam already proved his potential in this race last year when he made it into the top 10 and this spring has been a breakthrough for Simon who was in the top 10 in both Romandie and Pais Vasco. The latter is coming back to racing after a short break while the former was in action in the Tour des Fjords after he missed most of the sprint due to a fractured wrist and he rode strongly as a climbing domestique in a race that didn’t suit him. However, he confirmed his potential in Tirreno-Adriatico where he was one of the best on the climbs. Orica-GreenEDGE may not have their best team for the team time trial but they shouldn’t be too far off the pace. The sky seems to be the limit to their potential and this race could make another step in their development.

 

On paper Joaquim Rodriguez is one of the best climbers in the race and he should find the course to his liking. However, the Spaniard is never very strong in his preparation races. When he last did the Dauphiné in 2013, he rode in support of Daniel Moreno and this year he is likely to have a similar approach. We expect him to use the race to fine-tune his condition but he is unlikely to be strong enough to follow the best at this point of the season. Furthermore, he never reached his best level in the classics and even though he won the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, the Spanish veteran has to prove that he can still beat the very best climbers in this kind of race.

 

If Joaquim Rodriguez follows his usual pattern in this race, the door may be open for Giampaolo Caruso to lead the team. In fact it would be no surprise if Katusha decide to focus fully on the Italian just like they rode for Daniel Moreno in 2013. Caruso is a very poor time triallist and so he should find the course to his liking. As he has mostly been riding as a domestique, he has not achieved many personal results but his level seems to have improved a lot. He had an outstanding 2014 season where he got very close to winning Liege-Bastogne-Liege and won Milan-Turin. This season he has not yet found his best level but as he is gearing up for the Tour de France he should be ready to grab a rare chance to lead the team.

 

Like Peraud, Daniel Navarro has had a very bad spring season as he has crashed twice and so missed out on most of the racing. Hence, he lines up at the Dauphiné with a blank results sheet and now it is time for him to shine. The Tour de France is his big goal and he is again expected to lead Cofidis. He is usually strongly in the Dauphiné as he was 5th in 2013 ad 9th in 2014 and last year he proved that he is still improving as he was riding very well in the Vuelta a Espana. He may still lack the top level to contend for the win but on this kind of course he should be able to do well.

 

Vincenzo Nibali is the Astana captain but if the Tour de France champion is off the pace, the Kazakh team have another card to play. Michele Scarponi will be one of the key lieutenants in the Tour de France and has been preparing for this race with his captain. He is clearly no longer the rider he once was but his performances in Pais Vasco and Romandie prove that he is still a very strong rider. With no time trial, he should find the course to his liking and with a very strong Astana team, he could find himself with an advantage after the team time trial.

 

Rafael Valls was once regarded as a huge talent but his progress stalled. This year he has finally confirmed that he has a huge talent, winning the highly competitive Tour of Oman and finishing in the top 10 in both Catalunya and Paris-Nice. He is expected to be a key support rider for Costa in both this race and the Tour but he could actually turn out to be stronger than his leader. Lampre-Merida have a surprisingly strong team for the team time trial and with no individual test, Valls could create another surprise.

 

Pierre Rolland is aiming at another strong showing in the Tour de France and unlike last year he will use the Dauphiné to gear up for the race. With no time trial, the course suits him well and he generally likes the long Alpine passes. However, Rolland has always needed quite a bit of racing to get into his best shape and so he has never been very strong in this race. After his break from racing, he has only done two one-day events and it may still be a bit too early for him to shine.

 

Tinkoff-Saxo have had most of their climbers riding at the Giro and Rafal Majka will do the Tour de Suisse. This opens the door for Robert Kiserlovski to lead the team in the Dauphiné and he will be keen to prove that he has finally reached his best form after a disappointing spring season. His spot on the Tour de France roster is unlikely to be guaranteed and he needs to prove himself in this race. Last year he finished in the top 10 at the Giro but he is generally much stronger in the week-long races than in the grand tours. Among the climbers he is one of the poorest time triallists and so he should benefit from this year’s course. If he can find the level he had in the 2014 spring he could create a surprise.

 

Finally, Julian Alaphilippe deserves a mention. The Frenchman has been the revelation of the 2015 season, finishing second in Fleche Wallonne and Liege-Bastogne-Liege and winning the queen stage in the Tour of California. Until he took the latter win, he was fully regarded as a puncheur but in that race he suddenly proved that he can do long climbs as well. However, there is a big difference between beating the likes of Peter Sagan on a single big day of climbing in California and competing with the best climbers in the world over four consecutive days in the Alps. We would be surprised if Alaphilippe is a GC contender in this race but the talented Frenchman is constantly creating surprises and another one could be in store next week in France.

 

***** Chris Froome

**** Alejandro Valverde, Andrew Talansky

*** Vincenzo Nibali, Romain Bardet, Daniel Martin, Rui Costa, Tejay van Garderen

** Wilco Kelderman, Bauke Mollema, Mathias Frank, Jean-Christophe Peraud, Simon Yates, Adam Yates,  Joaquim Rodriguez, Giampaolo Caruso, Daniel Navarro, Michele Scarponi, Rafael Valls, Pierre Rolland, Robert Kiserlovski, , Benat Intxausti, Julian Alaphilippe

* Samuel Sanchez, Alexis Vuillermoz, Haimar Zubeldia, Rohan Dennis, Arnold Jeannesson, Winner Anacona, Dominik Nerz, Riccardo Zoidl, Rein Taaramae, Tim Wellens, Ben Gastauer, Romain Sicard, Jarlinson Pantano, David de la Cruz, Louis Meintjes, Merhawi Kudus, Tony Gallopin, Stephen Cummings, Dylan Teuns, Kenny Elissonde, Gorka Izagirre, John Gadret, Bart De Clercq, Wout Poels, Nicolas Roche, Peter Kennaugh, Philip Deignan, Jesper Hansen, Jose Mendes