The change of scenery is radical. There is no evidence to suggest that leaving the coast of Pas-de-Calais, then Normandy and Brittany, and heading for Mayenne will favour a completely different type of rider. And yet, we can already cross off the list of contenders for victory today, at the end of the 171.4 kilometres separating Saint-Méen-le-Grand from Laval, riders such as Mathieu Van der Poel, Tadej Pogacar and Ben Healy, winners of stages in Boulogne-sur-Mer, Rouen, Mûr-de-Bretagne and Vire. The sprinters have been treated to two spectacular scenes so far, in Lille and Dunkirk, where Jasper Philipsen and his rival and compatriot Tim Merlier took the honours. So, see you in Laval for the third act.
This time, the ring is set up on a slight incline, where no one should be missing, except of course Philipsen, who is nursing a broken collarbone. In theory, there should be a nice rematch between Tim Merlier and Jonathan Milan, with the European champion having won their duel in Dunkirk by a handful of centimetres. Since then, the Italian has warmed up his legs by beating the peloton in all the intermediate sprints and is eagerly awaiting the chance to rush towards the finish line that really counts. But the confrontation will not be limited to a heated debate between the two most prominent sprinters of the season. Biniam Girmay, the 2024 green jersey winner, could take advantage of the slight slope to make his ideal weight-to-power ratio work for him on the final straight. And among the less obvious contenders, Kaden Groves, Jordi Meeus, Soren Waerenskjold, Phil Bauhaus, Arnaud Démare, Dylan Groenewegen and, why not, Paul Penhoët should not be overlooked.
