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 8.
The final stage of the race is not as difficult as those that come before it, but it's by no means an easy challenge. The final 133 kilometers will mostly have an uphill trajectory, which means the riders will already arrive at Mont-Cenis fatigued. Whilst the climb is not as hard, the fatigue from the week, day, and the altitude may compensate for it.
Stage 8: Val d'Arc - Plateau du Mont-Cenis, 133.5 kilometers
The starting kilometers have two categorized climbs where the breakaway should settle in before starting the main climbing part of the day. This will consist of three 'warm up climbs' before Mont Cenis. They will be 6.7Km at 6.7%; 2.5Km at 7.5% and 6.3Km at 6.1%. The last of which ends with 32 kilometers to go, not a lot, and there is no descent that follows.
The final climb to Mont Cenis then, besides going up to 2000 meters of altitude, is 9.7 kilometers long at 7%. The climb itself finishes with 5 kilometers to go, and the riders will then race through the lakeside for that flat finale all the way into the finish.
The Weather
Map Criterium du Dauphiné 2025 stage 8
We will have quite a lot more wind from the west, which can come as a crosswind and tailwind late in the day before the final climb. The weather will not be good, with rain and thunderstorms possible, but the riders will not really be tackling descents that will become dangerous because of it.
The Favourites
Tadej Pogacar - There is little that needs to be said honestly, Pogacar is above the rest and if nothing weird happens he will win the stage - unless UAE decides to not go after it. He is the strongest on the short climbs, on the long climbs, and in case it comes down to a sprint. Ultimately, no I don't believe something can be done at the time for him to lose this dominance.
Jonas Vingegaard will likely try if he has the legs, although it must be said, if that isn't what Pogacar already does to begin with. If anything changes within the Top10 it would only be from positions 6 to 10 potentially, there are some small gaps, but that's a minor fight ultimately and it won't be for the stage win.
Breakaway - The only way for Pogacar to realistically not win this stage is if a breakaway succeeds - something that won't happen if UAE is interested in controlling the race. Still, we have quality riders who will certainly try and will want to make the task hard for anyone who would want to work behind.
Whilst a day for the climbers, it's not necessarily the pure climbers as a few riders can handle efforts like this and also ride well on the flat roads. Bruno Armirail and Maxim van Gils appear to be two riders in excellent form for example, who could perform on a day like this. The Frenchmen Romain Bardet, Aurélien Paret-Peintre and Alex Baudin will be men to watch; Santiago Buitrago and Alexey Lutsenko should also have the freedom to give it a shot; whilst Visma will likely want to try and give one of their domestiques a reward for their current good form if they can seize it, such as Sepp Kuss and Ben Tulett.
Prediction Criterium du Dauphiné 2025 stage 8:
*** Tadej Pogacar
** Jonas VIngegaard
* Florian Lipowitz, Remco Evenepoel, Tobias Johannessen, Carlos Rodríguez, Paul Seixas, Enric Mas, Bruno Armirail, Maxim van Gils, Romain Bardet, Alex Baudin, Sepp Kuss, Ben Tulett
** Jonas VIngegaard
* Florian Lipowitz, Remco Evenepoel, Tobias Johannessen, Carlos Rodríguez, Paul Seixas, Enric Mas, Bruno Armirail, Maxim van Gils, Romain Bardet, Alex Baudin, Sepp Kuss, Ben Tulett
Pick: Tadej Pogacar
How: Solo win, statistically speaking that remains the likely scenario.
Read also
🤩 Répétition générale avant le #TDF2025 sur les routes du #Dauphiné ! Rendez-vous dimanche pour le Grand Départ !
— Critérium du Dauphiné (@dauphine) June 2, 2025
🤩 Dress rehearsal before the #TDF2025 on the roads of the #Dauphiné! See you on Sunday for the Grand Départ! pic.twitter.com/FDANCesDpV
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
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