"It looks way steeper than it actually is, and that can crack some guys" - How the mythical threat of Mûr-de-Bretagne will challenge Tour de France contenders

Later this afternoon, we are expecting some more Tour de France fireworks, as stage 7 of the 2025 Tour de France concludes at the challenging finale of the Mûr-de-Bretagne. According to ex-pro Dan Martin, who knows the climb very well, the almost mythical threat of the climb can sometimes cause as much danger as the road itself. 

"It’s a very similar style climb to the stage in Rouen," the Irishman analyses of the Mûr-de-Bretagne in conversation with Cycling Weekly. "It’s a real head game as, when you come round the corner and just see the wall in front of you, it looks way steeper than it actually is, and that can crack some guys."

As mentioned, Martin is a rider who knows the climb well, having won atop there in his own pro career. "I just about managed to hang on to the big chain ring, and the bigger chain ring on the front means that the torque you’re putting through the bike makes it easier to push the pedals round and you can then clip down the gears more quickly in the flatter section on the top of the climb," Martin recalled. "I know the fashion now is to sit down and create those huge power numbers and to create that torque and push the bigger gear, whereas when I won there, and when I came second in 2015 as well, I just used a similar kind of tactic on both occasions."

This year, it's likely the likes of Tadej Pogacar, Mathieu van der Poel and Jonas Vingegaard will be right at the front once again. For some of the GC guys though, Martin sees conservativism as key. "It’s a really fine balance as a GC rider currently," Martin explains. "Because you’ve got guys who are counting their counters, so to speak. Every bit of energy that they can save they are doing it currently in order to think about and consider the last half of the race."

"There’s that momentum and confidence that you get from getting a good stage result – that’s the flip side of it. But the time gaps are never going to be huge on the Mûr-de-Bretagne, it’s a matter of seconds played out at the finish line," he continues. "That was always my view that being aggressive in the first few days, like Tadej did yesterday, gives you that momentum and confidence, but it also relaxes the team because they know he’s in good condition now."

Given what has already happened at this Tour though, Martin believes Vingegaard can take confidence. "On that type of finish in Rouen, I think we always expected Tadej to be stronger. I think he was, but the difference wasn’t that much. But I think the Rouen stage really showed how mentally strong Vingegaard is. I could see him maybe one gear up from Tadej, his cadence was maybe a little bit higher on the final climb," he concludes. "He was then almost praying that Tadej was going to slow down at some point and I thought you could see him starting to blow. He sat down but then a second or two later Tadej sat down too. That gave him that boost to think he’s only there, I can get there. I think having the mental strength to be able to stand again just shows how much he wants this."