PREVIEW | Criterium du Dauphiné 2025 stage 5 - Break or sprint? And can Mathieu van der Poel take the Maillot Jaune?

From the 8th to the 15th of June the riders take on the Criterium du Dauphiné. Not only is this race usually the biggest preview ahead of the Tour de France, but it will also have the presence of Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel. We preview stage 5.

Another tricky day in the Dauphiné, the fifth stage of the race features a flat start but then a few climbs where there can be some pace injected, which would split the peloton. Likely, it's a day for a sprint, but the climbs do pose a question of who will be in contention for the stage.

6.7Km at 5.6% (75Km to go); 4.7Km at 5% (63Km to go) and 5.4Km at 4.6% (28Km to go) will be those that are most important to take into consideration. Not brutal climbs, rolling climbs above all, where a strong rouleur in the breakaway can keep it's gap to the peloton. After the descent, the roads will be rolling into the entrance to Mâcon where the final kilometers will be pan-flat and with nothing technical - although there will be a 180-degree corner inside the final kilometer.

*** Mathieu van der Poel
** Axel Laurance, Laurence Pithie, Louis Barre, Jonathan Milan
* Bastien Tronchon, Fred Wright, Jake Stewart

Pick: Mathieu van der Poel