Sprinters, seize your opportunity!

June 9 ^th 2025 - 04:15

The stars of the Tour de France constellation are not willing to wait for July or for the higher summits of the Critérium du Dauphiné to battle. Stage 1 was one of the easiest, on paper… And yet Jonas Vingegaard ignited the finale, Remco Evenepoel displayed his strength to react and Tadej Pogacar powered to victory, his first in the Dauphiné, five years after his maiden participation (the 2020 edition remains the last stage race where he didn’t take a single win), with Mathieu Van der Poel and Santiago Buitrago providing a stellar supporting cast.

Stage 2, from Prémilhat to Issoire, features even more elevation. But the finale is less demanding, although young local riders look at the Côte de Nonette (1.8km at 5.7%, to be summited with 17.9 km to go) as a major ascent, just like Romain Bardet did as a kid. As he bids farewell to professional cycling in his home race, the French man is eager to seize any opportunity. But he knows very well his childhood summit is not supposed to turn the race upside down like the Côte de Buffon did on Sunday.

On the way to Montluçon, Jonathan Milan’s Lidl-Trek and Pascal Ackermann’s Israel-Premier Tech had invested lots of energy to try and control the day. The Italian powerhouse is racing his first Critérium du Dauphiné; the German star already found the way to success on these roads. Both of them will be determined to shine in Issoire.