Our Pick:
Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) @ 5.00
The Tour de France begins Saturday, June 26th, in Brest, Brittany.
While there are plenty of legitimate longshot options, if this year’s Tour ends up as a three man race it could be legendary. You have the defending champion who won in the most dramatic way last year, the man he passed at the end, who oh by the way went on to capture his second straight Vuelta a España, and whoever emerges from the dominant team.
While Pogacar and Roglic are obvious favorites, how Team Ineos attacks the race is a bigger question. Formerly Team Sky, they have won the race seven of the last nine years. In 2019 Egan Bernal outdueled teammate and 2018 champ Geraint Thomas, who finished second. The competition within Ineos is so fierce last year Thomas didn’t even ride in the Tour, and this year Bernal was asked to focus on the Giro, which he won, but steer clear of the Tour.
Is this a 2020 rematch?
You could argue that last year Jumbo – Visma brought a more star studded team to the Tour than Ineos. While Roglic was their top dog, Tom Dumoulin is more than capable in leading a team, and Wout van Aert, George Bennett, and Sepp Kuss all put in serious work. While everybody will remember Pogacar on Stage 20, Jumbo and Roglic controlled large portions of the race.
Feeling lucky?
David Gaudu @ 80.00
Gaudu has been among the Top 10 this year at the Tour of the Basque Country, Tour des Alpes-Maritimes et du Var, La Flèche Wallonne, and Critérium du Dauphiné. Last year the 24-year-old was eighth at the Vuelta a España.