PREVIEW | Tour de France 2023 stage 7 - Brutal heat and strong wind to make sprint day an all-out challenge

Preview. After an incredibly explosive weekend in the mountains, stage 7 of the Tour de France sees a return to the Pyrenees. However it'll be a difficult day, with the wind and heat making a flat day a very difficult one.

Stage 7 of the Tour de France sees the riders leave the Pyrenees and start heading north. The metropolitan area of Bordeaux receives the Tour de France back, for a stage that will be perfectly suited to the fast men. The first true transition day as the riders steer away from the mountains.

Estimated start and finish times for Tour de France stage 7: 13:15-17:10CET

In all reality there isn't much to analyze from the day, other than a majority of pan-flat country roads which can be exposed to strong winds but there isn't much to it other than that. The riders will put all their attention into the finale.

It's not a technical finale however the riders head into the center of the city, speed and tension will be high among the urban environment. The final kilometers see the riders cross the river, but the final two kilometers will virtually be completely straight, only with a couple of roundabouts to stretch things out before the finish line.

A rest day? Before checking the weather, many GC riders would certainly be happy to leave the mountains for now, but they won't find a pleasant day. Temperatures will go over 30 degrees throughout the whole afternoon into Bordeaux, and if that wasn't enough the wind will also blow! In these plains the roads will be exposed, the wind will be moderately strong from the southeast, a tailwind throughout most of the day, however in a few sections early in the day there will be crosswinds. Tension will be real, and the sprint should be very fast with a tailwind.

Jasper Philipsen - Winning two out of two sprints, Philipsen has now become the sprinter to beat. Incredible positioning skills, perfect leadout by Alpecin-Deceuninck in both sprints, and the green jersey on his shoulders and as a goal. He nails all types of sprints, here the tailwind may favour heavier sprinters, but there are no arguments against the Belgian who could make it three for three.

Caleb Ewan - Ewan has so far positively surprised me. Avoided the crashes, not had an injured de Buyst helping his leadouts, but has thrived with positioning, where he usually struggles. In fact Ewan has already confirmed he has the legs to win a stage, but has faced a brutal Jasper Philipsen. Will this be the day finally? I reckon he'll have better suited sprints, but everyday is an opportunity.

Dylan Groenewegen - I talk about Groenewegen here not because he's better or in better form than the remaining sprinters, but because it's a perfect day for him. Almost pan-flat, with a tailwind all day long and tailwind flat sprint. If he is to succeed this could be it, it's a pure powerhouse finale and here he could be just as fast or even faster than the two above.

The heavier riders will like this stage. Think Phil Bauhaus, Mads Pedersen, Alexander Kristoff... The BORA duo of Danny van Poppel and Jordi Meeus could do quite well here too but they have not shown the same chemistry as the Dutchman did with Bennett, Meeus had bad luck in the last sprint being hampered by a nearby crash. By Fabio Jakobsen no less, who should also be quite fond of this finale, but has been struggling quite a lot the last few days and that fatigue may be felt here.

Then we have Jumbo-Visma, Wout van Aert has been extremely active but has not yet taken the stage win he seeks, alongside Christophe Laporte the duo could be eyeing a result here - although stage 8 will be ideal for them. Mark Cavendish, Sam Welsford and Biniam Girmay are riders to keep under eye, Bryan Coquard is chasing the points classification quite well and will try to remain in the fight, this won't be an easy finale for him but so far he's done good. Peter Sagan, Corbin Strong and Luca Mozzato sit as outsiders, possible Top10 finishers on a good day.

*** Jasper Philipsen
** Caleb Ewan, Dylan Groenewegen, Phil Bauhaus
* Fabio Jakobsen, Wout van Aert, Mark Cavendish, Mads Pedersen, Sam Welsford, Alexander Kristoff

Pick: Jasper Philipsen