Thibaut Pinot didn't live up to expectations in this year's Tour de France and now the Frenchman may decide to simply forgo his big home race. Instead, a Giro-Vuelta may be on the cards for the FDJ rider who will make his decision when the Tour route has been unveiled.

The entire French public had high expectations for Thibaut Pinot in this year's Tour de France following his fantastic debut in 2012 when he won a stage and finished 10th on a route that didn't really suit him. It all came to nothing when the talented Frenchman feared the high speed on the descent from the Port de Pailheres, lost contact with the main favourites and saw his GC hopes being crushed. One week later he abandoned the race, citing a sore throat.

He bounced back with a strong showing on the mountainous route in the Vuelta a Espana where he finished 7th overall in his first ever participation in the Spanish race. Apparently, he liked the Spanish race and its calmer atmosphere as he now considers forgoing the Tour to focus on a Giro-Vuelta double.

Pinot has never raced the Giro but has performed well on Italian soil and made it clear that he likes to race in the country whose many steep climbs suit him well. He won the Settimana Lombarda in 2011 and got close to a win in Tre Valli Varesine and performed well in Il Lombardia this year.

“I’m waiting to see the profile of the Tour before I decide on what to do, and see if I perhaps go to the Giro and Vuelta instead," he told Eurosport. "My programme isn’t defined yet."

“Perhaps there won’t be the Tour de France, maybe it will be a combination of the Giro and Vuelta, but I haven’t made any decision yet,” he added. “I’ll have to talk about it with the team in the coming week.”

What could convince Pinot to line up in his home race is the prospect of a summit finish on La Planche des Belles Filles which first featured in the 2012 edition of the race and is located very close to Pinot's hometown of Melisey. French newspaper Le Dauphine has reported that the climb may be included on next year's route which will be unveiled next Wednesday.

Pinot admits that he felt the pressure in this year's race after his strong 2012 showing.

“Last year, after the Tour, the bar was set very high and the expectation was that I would aim for the top five or win a stage," he said. "At the Tour it’s hard to come back and do better again the following year, and the problem I had on descents didn’t help."

Pinot finished his season in Il Lombardia but failed to win a race in the 2013 season.