"I hope that was all it was" - Johannessen hopes to start Tour de France differently than his Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes opening

Tobias Johannessen turned some heads with a blazing finish to the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes as followed up a strong breakaway day with back-to-back general classification battles, but he doesn't necessarily want a repeat in the Tour de France.

Uno-X Mobility know they have a genuine GC top ten contender on their hands in July, and will arrive at next month's Grand Depart with an in-form Johannessen hoping to improve on his sixth place in 2025 at the Tour. He arrives with every reason to believe he can do just that.

The Norwegian rider has enjoyed a strong season, finishing ninth at the UAE Tour, fourth in Tirreno Adriatico and then third in Itzulia Basque Country, before a long stint at altitude training. The Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes then followed as his big litmus test for the Grand Boucle.

If you took the opening stage as an isolated indication of his level, it wouldn't tell the full picture. He lost over two minutes on the rest of the big leaders in a chaotic opening stage, but just a few days later, soared straight back into GC contention after a breakaway battle that saw his take minutes on the same favourites.

"The first stage of this race was a bit s**t, but that's the only really bad day I've had this year," Johannessen told IDL Pro Cycling. "It's always a bit strange to come back from an altitude camp, especially after a month and a half without racing. I hope that was all it was. I've felt good since then."

His final two stages, now planted in the top ten of the GC standings, he fought on mountain-top finishes with the top contenders and even dropped many on the final stage - except eventual winner Isaac del Toro and Juan Ayuso - that tells him that he could be in better form as he eyes turn to July 4th.

"I think it's been a very good year so far. I'm happy with how it feels. I think I'm in better form than last year. I also feel more confident. All the training has been perfect too, so I think July will be fun."

He added: "I definitely want to do better than last year. That's always the goal. As long as the feeling is good, I'm not too worried about my placing. After all, there are so many things that can happen."

Johannessen and Uno-X want to go one or two better than sixth, which would put him in the conversation around podium level. However, a stage win is a big dream for the 26-year-old, who will be buoyed by better sensations this time around than last.

"Of course the dream is a stage win, and then doing even better in the general classification. I think we'll just have to see. It's hard to know now how the legs will be throughout July. So, in any case, I think I'm in better form."

The battle to even be in the running for the Tour de France podium will be fierce, with a bloated field of contenders all arriving with GC ambitions. Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard are the firm favourites to occupy the number one and two spots when the peloton arrives in Paris, but there's many more looking to be the third on the podium or better.

Paul Seixas arrives an unknown quantity over three works. Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz come having been the last two riders to grab third spot. Looking further there are the likes of Tom Pidcock, Oscar Onley, Isaac del Toro and Kevin Vauquelin among others in the fray.