The UK's answer to the great Tour De France, the Tour of Britain has been carving out a name for itself in its relatively short 13 year history.
A very unpredictable race found near the end of the cycling seasonal calendar, it is a vital race for those looking to prepare for the World Championships. It also serves as a great opportunity for British fans to line the route of each stage and see the final ride of our national hero, Sir Bradley Wiggins.
The route for this year's edition looks perfect for the sprinters, six out of the eight stages have the potential to finish in big bunch sprints. The reasoning behind this is to gear these riders up for the World Championships in early October, another race which looks certain to end up in a sprint.
With such a sprinter friendly route, this year's Tour of Britain has attracted some massive names from the sport, Mark Cavendish, British favourite and recent silver medalist at the Rio Olympics, Andre Griepel, the current German champion, and Elia Viviani, winner of the gold medal in the Men's Omnium race in Rio.
Not only has the race attracted big name sprinters, it has also caught the eye of Bradley Wiggins who will use this edition of the Tour of Britain as his final farewell to all the fans that have supported him throughout his illustrious career.
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He will be bringing his Team Wiggins outfit to the race, a team which also includes Owain Doull, Wiggins' team mate in his team pursuit gold medal winning performance in Rio. Doull has described this race as feeling a little like 'lads on tour,' and rightly so, both deserve their congratulations from home fans after their heroic performances at the Olympics.
For all fans interested in where to watch this year's race, here's a map of where each stage will take place:
The Tour directors have put together a route which seems to cater for most areas of the UK, satisfying a country that is slowly starting to adopt cycling as one of its favoured sports. Each stage looks to be unique, whilst most of them will produce bunch sprints, the lead up to each finish line will be a little less than conventional.
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This can be put down to the rapidly changing landscape that we have here in the UK, not to mention the weather which could prove pivotal in a few of the stages.
Tom Dumoulin
Tom Dumoulin comes into this race as the clear favourite, winner of a mountain stage from a daring solo escape, and a dominating win in the individual time tria,l both in this year's Tour De France; he has already demonstrated this summer, the exact attributes needed to win this edition of the Tour of Britain.
Adding to this his recent silver medal in the Men's road time trial at the Rio Olympics, he is certainly the strongest rider on the start line for this race. With a strong and predominantly Dutch team around the rider hailing from the Netherlands, he will have excellent support for his GC ambitions. Its hard to imagine Dumoulin not taking the title this year, he can be found at 11/4 with Sky Bet for the overall win.
Rohan Dennis
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A rider with very similar abilities to Domoulin, Dennis is an extremely strong time trialist, winner of the 2015 Tour De France prologue, a very similar route to stage 7's individual time trial. Dennis is also a very capable climber, he will more than likely be able to cope with the pace up the climb to Haytor.
It will be stage 7's time trial where he will be looking to take most time, becoming a real prologue specialist, he even has the potential to beat Domoulin on this stage. If he can gain just a few seconds over Domoulin here then he will surely wrap up the overall win. A serious contender he can be found at 11/2 with Betfred to win the overall.
Wout Poels
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Poels fits the bill as one of the strongest climbers in this year's line up, so is therefore considered one of the main favourites for the overall win. In contrast to Dennis and Domoulin, Poels will be solely looking at stage 6 and the summit finish on Haytor. Winner of Liege-Bastogne-Liege this year and 2nd place in last year's edition of the Tour of Britain, he has demonstrated that he is one of the strongest and punchiest climbers currently in the pro peloton.
After playing second fiddle and super domestique to Chris Froome in this summer's Tour De France, Poels will be repayed as team leader for this race, surrounded by a strong team that includes Brits Ben Swift and Ian Stannard. If Poels manages to take a healthy lead over the other favourites on stage 6, then he may just be able to hang on through the following day's time trial and claim the overall win. Poels can be found at 3/1 with Paddy Power for the overall win.
Owain Doull
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Olympic revelation Doull, takes the start line riding for Team Wiggins, under the watchful and protective eyes of team owner and best mate, Sir Bradley Wiggins. Doull isn't quite the strongest climber, nor the strongest time trialist, but he does have a very dynamic style of riding, winning a variety of different races throughout his career. Third place overall and winner of the points competition in the 2015 edition of this race, Doull is no stranger to success on home roads.
Along with the fully British squad of Team Wiggins, he will be motivated to do well in front of a home crowd. If Doull can use his tactical brain and time an attack correctly, then he could take a handful of seconds that may prove vital come stage 7's time trial. A strong Olympic pursuiter, the 15km course should also relatively suit him, if he's on an extremely good day then he could even challenge Domoulin or Dennis for the time trial win. Doull is one of the main British hopefuls for this race and can be found at a massive 100/1 with Paddy Power for the overall win, definitely worth a bet considering his current form off the back of a successful Olympics.
Outsiders for the overall win
Stephen Cummings
Currently in his strongest season to date, Cummings is a real dark horse for the overall win in this race. A prolific escape artist, he has carved a name for himself within the peloton. He will likely be marked in this race given his dangerous abilities, but if he can use his tactical brain to slip away, then he can definitely gain some much needed seconds in his quest for overall glory. Cummings can be found at7/2 with Paddy Power for the win.
Tony Gallopin
Gallopin is an extremely clever and cunning rider, strong in one day classics and stage races, he consistently defies belief as he demonstrates his amazing all round ability. On his day he can climb with some of the best in the pro peloton, if he can snatch a stage win before the race hits the summit finish of Haytor, then he could build on his lead even further, strengthening his advantage into stage 7's time trial. Gallopin can be found at 25/1 with Paddy Power for the overall win.
Daniel Martin
Just like Poels, Martin comes to this race as one of the strongest climbers, the summit finish on stage 6 suiting him down to a tee. If Martin can create a large enough gap on this summit finish then this will put him into a strong position to take the overall win. Not the strongest of time trialists, stage 7 could prove cruel in his ambitions for overall glory. A dark horse for the win, Martin can be found at 25/1 with Betfred.
With the riders on the start line of this year's Tour of Britain, coupled with an exciting and dynamic route; we should certainly be in for an exciting week of racing. One of the few races on British soil this is a great opportunity to go and watch, at least one stage being close to all areas of the UK. Not to mention its also completely free, this is the perfect day out for those seeking thrilling and exciting racing.
This year's edition of the race also serves as a pseudo 'victory lap' for the nations favourite knight, Sir Bradley Wiggins. This will be his final ever road race, a race on home soil to cap of a career which has seen him win titles all across Europe on various different levels. The Tour of Britain begins on the 4th September and ends on the 11th September with the final stage in London. Sit back, relax, and tune into ITV4 daily to get your fix of some proper 'British cycle racing.'
Words By: @InsidePeloton96
For an in-depth stage-by-stage preview, check out insidethepeloton96
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