Physical battles and mind games

June 13 ^th 2025 - 05:22

The final three days of the Critérium du Dauphiné are upon us, to ignite early fireworks ahead of July and see who’s got the best climbing legs ahead of the Tour de France, as the biggest stars of cycling face off for the yellow and blue jersey. Friday’s challenges, on day 6 of the Dauphiné, are bound to deliver some intense action. And their very nature reminds us how much professional cycling is a mental struggle as much as a physical battle.

On the eve of Saturday’s mountain showdown, starting on the slopes leading to Col de la Madeleine, stage 6 builds up towards an explosive finale Combloux, past the Côte de Domancy. Attackers are excited, especially Paul Ourselin, who eyes the first cat-1 ascent of their edition, Côte du Mont-Saxonnex, to award big KOM points and guide the riders into the last 40 kilometres.

They will go through historic venues - Cluses, Sallanches - and reach the iconic Côte de Domancy, where Bernard Hinault wrote history and where Jonas Vinegaard inflicted a crushing defeat on Tadej Pogacar during the Tour de France 2023, before the Slovenian star turned the tables in 2024. Where do they stand for this summer? We’ll soon have a much more precise idea.