Top time trialists at the Tour (who's left of them anyway) will have one final chance at glory on Stage 19 from Bonneval to Chartes... Wiggins will want to stamp his authoriry on this time trial to prove that his is the best rider in the Tour and the rightful owner of the Yellow Jersey. Wigo wins!!! Continue reading

Stage 18 is a long one at 222km or 137 miles, but it's not particularly difficult, in least in comparison to the last two days in the Pyrenees. The Tour de France 2012 contenders will have a chance to "spin their legs" and "recover a bit" in advance of Saturday's decision 54km time trial. Continue reading

Featuring the 3rd and final mountaintop finish of the 2012 Tour, Stage 17 represents the last opportunity for GC contenders to make their move...Wiggins showed some strength at the end of Stage 16, and he may want to stamp his authority on this Tour de France by taking a stage win on top of the Peyragudes. Look for it! Continue reading

Stage 16 from Pau to Bagnères-de-Luchon features four monster climbs. Coming on the heals of the second rest day of the 2012 Tour de France, the 197 km or 122 mile slog up and down the major cols of the Pyrenees will make for interesting racing. Continue reading

Tour de France Stage 15 from Samanta to Pau sidesteps the Pyrennes to take the riders to Pau for the 64th time. While lumpy, the stage is not particularly difficult, and it should be one for the sprinters, unless, of course, sprinters team let a breakaway go early. Continue reading

Sanchez found himself with a small group that included Sagan with 10K to go, he waited until Sagan went for a snack before he laid down theat... back in the peloton, trouble was brewing. Apparently, someone was none-too-happy that the never before featured Mur de Péguère was being featured in the 2012 Tour de France. They took their revenge by throwing tacks on road at the top of the climb, ensnaring Cadel Evans and others. Continue reading

Onstensibly, this is one for the sprinters. That said, if it's windy along the Mediterranean cos ast, it could cause some splits in the peloton, that is liklely quite fatigued from the campaign in the Alps. Woe to Tour de France 2012 favorites who fail to pay attention lest the wind or crashes get them! Continue reading

Stage 12 from Saint-Jean-de-Mauriene to Annonay Davézieux is another difficult day in the Alps 226km or 140 miles. This is especially after Stage 11 to La Toussuire, which is sure to have left mark on the riders. Continue reading

Stage 11 of the 2012 Tour de France is relatively short at 148 km or nearly 92 miles, but it features four (4) categorized climbs and the second of only three (3) mountaintop finishes at the Tour de France...Stage 11 also represents one of the few opportunities the Tour de France 2012 favorites will have a chance to move their way up the leader board. Continue reading

With Stage 10, the Tour de France peloton begins a three day campaign in the Alps. The first day after the rest day is always tricky, and riders never know how their body's will react. As expected, a large group including Thomas Vockler, Jens Voigt and Luis Leon Sanchez attacked the peloton early only to be shattered into smaller groups as the massive Col du Columbier took hold. Continue reading

Stage 9 from Arc-et-Senans to Bescancon is the first real race of truth in the 2012 Tour de France. The 41.5 km or 25.7 mile individual time trial will invite the top time trialists at the Tour to come forward and show their mettle. The course is undulating and features several short climbs that will challenge the legs of the Tour contenders. The big question everyone should be asking is why or how did Bradley Wiggins go so much better on the time trial than Evans and the rest of the GC contenders? Continue reading

Who Are the Best Time Trial Riders in the Tour de France? Fabian Cancellera, Bradley Wiggins and Sylvain Chavenelle arrived on the podium after the Prologue on Day 1 of the Tour, but as Stage 8 to Les Planches des Belles Filles showed, only Wiggins is among the best climbers of the Tour, and therefore, in contention for the general classification. So, in analyzing the top time trialists, riders must either be considered in the category of contenders for the Tour de France general classification or pretenders – time trial specialists like Cancellera and Tony Martin who have no chance of winning the Tour. Continue reading

With Bradley Wiggins now in the Yellow Jersey, the responsibility for controlling the race will fall to Team Sky. Likely, a number of Tour de France 2012 favorites - Frank Schleck, Levi Leipheimer, Jurgen Van Den Broech, Alejandro Valverde and Robert Gesink - who lost big time over the last few days will try to take a flyer to regain some time. Sky will need to decide who are danger men and who can fly. Continue reading

Today's 199 km (123 miles) stage from Tomblaine, just south of Metz, to the ski state of La Plance des Belles Filles (the board of the young girls), is one for the pure climbers and a test for the Tour de France 2012 contenders. Team Sky came to the front, put the hammer down and proceeded to decimate the field. Continue reading

Neither Contador nor Schleck are competing in the 2012 Tour de France. Contador is serving a yearlong suspension for a Clenbuterol doping positive in the 2010 Tour de France, while Schleck fractured his pelvis in a crash during the Tour de Suisse time trial. Creating a list of top climbers in the 2012 Tour de France begins with an evaluation of the mountainous stage races leading up to the Tour, such as the Tour de Suisse, the Criterium du Dauphine and even the Tour of California. Continue reading

The peloton continues their easterly push towards the mountains from Épernay to Metz . With only one Category 4 climb, Stage 6 of the Tour de France will be one last chance for the sprinters to shine for the better part of a week. This is another long stage - 207.5 km or 129 miles. The first week of the Tour de France, with its long, generally flat, sprint-filled stages, is as much about survival as it is about taking early stage victories. This is particularly true for teams with Yellow Jersey aspiratations. Just ask Garmin-Sharpe, who GC hopes are all but dashed after today's seemingly innocuous Stage 6 to Metz. Continue reading

Stage 5 would be a complete sleeper were it not for today's public disclosure of cyclists who reportedly betrayed Lance Armstrong... Levi Leipheimer, George Hincapie, Dave Zabriski and Jonathan Vaughters have all confessed to doping and turned Lance in at the same time. Continue reading

Category 4 climbs aside, the real challenge of Stage 4 could be wind developing off the English Channel. If the winds starts to blow, enchelons will form with the risk of creating significant gaps in the peloton. Tour de France Contenders 2012 like Evans, Wiggins, Menchov and others will need to pay careful attention. The resulting scurry for the head of the peloton could result in a large number of crashes. Thunderstorms forecast for the day may also present special challenges for a peloton that has already had three hard days of racing (the prologue doesn't count!). Continue reading

Stage 3 from Orchies to Boulogne-sur-Mer… climbs are short and steep and are sure to leave a mark on the peloton... The final short climb to the finish Boulogne-sur-Mer is a perfect finale for puncheurs like Sagan, Boasson Hagen, Gilbert and Valverde. Continue reading

Expect the teams of fast men like World Road Race Champion Mark Cavendish, Andre Griepel, Tyler Farrar, Peter Sagan and Philip Gilbert to jockey for position in the final 10 kms coming into Tournai.This stage will be pretty boring right up until the last 10K, but then watch out! High speed crashes are often the outcome on days like this. Mark Cavendish wins! Continue reading

Riders like Philipe Gilbert of BMC, Peter Sagan of Liquigas, Maxim Iglinski of Astana (winner of the Liege-Bastogne-Liege 2012) or Dan Martin of Garmin-Sharpe are possible winners. Mark Cavendish, who made a concerted effort to lose body weight and get lean since the Giro, may figure prominently in Seraing. Continue reading

Cancellara Wins the Prologue while Evans Loses Time to Wiggins The battle of the big aerobic engines at the Tour de France Prologue played out pretty much as expected. Fabian Cancellera, who rose to prominence in the 2004 Prologue in... Continue reading

The Tour de France Prologue will feature two types of riders, Pretenders and Contenders. The Pretenders are time trial specialists who are masters of the race against the clock but stand no chance of contending for the overall Tour de France victory. The Contenders are those top riders who time trial well, climb well, and are vying for overall victory. Continue reading

Cycling Commentary reviewed, ranked and rated all of the top Tour de France 2012 contenders using a proprietary scoring system. Continue reading

So, who are the top Tour de France contenders for 2012? CyclingCommentary.com breaks it down by identifying the top riders in the pro peloton, reviewing their prospects, ranking their performance and rating their chances for success at this year’s Tour de France. Continue reading