Tour de France: Chris Froome nearing his date with destiny
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Barring a monumentally unfortunate turn of events – and we’ve nearly seen them already this summer – Chris Froome should be homing in on a third Tour de France crown after an advantage-building weekend.
The Team SKY rider leads Dutchman Bauke Mollema by 1 minute and 47 seconds, with expected rival Nairo Quintana way back in fourth, 2minutes and 59seconds behind.
Following the farcical scenes on Thursday’s Stage 12 on the climb towards Mont Ventoux, Froome regrouped across the weekend.
The 31-year-old finished second on Stage 13, and maintained his gap by finishing with his rivals on Stage 14.
It was the same story on Sunday too, and all told Froome is now 1/8 to claim this year’s General Classification.
With a host of mountainous stages to come this week as the Tour heads into Switzerland, the Englishman can’t afford to take any chances just yet, but his bold tactics earlier on in the Tour look to have paid dividends.
Rumours meanwhile have emerged over the weekend over Quintana, who was strong second favourite before the Tour began.
The Movistar rider has barely featured this year, and reports are suggesting the Colombian may be suffering from illness.
At 12/1, the bookies aren’t ruling his chances out just yet, and if fully fit, the 25-year-old will have plenty of opportunities to make a move this week.
But Quintana’s woes could hand Britain’s Adam Yates the chance of an unlikely podium.
The Orica-BikeExchange rider has been in the podium spots since Stage 7, and having been a 50/1 shot for a top-three finish before the Tour began, is now a 9/2 chance.
As for the sprinters, Mark Cavendish claimed his fourth Stage win of the Tour on Saturday to move onto 30 overall.
The Manx rider is unlikely to overhaul Peter Sagan’s 62 point lead for the Green Jersey, but it has still been another fine Tour for the sprinter.
Cavendish could bag another Stage win today as the Riders head to the Swiss capital of Berne.
It’s the final chance for Sprinters to shine before a series of mountainous stages, and Cavendish is 12/1 for his fifth win of 2016, with Sagan favourite at 4/1.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
