PREVIEW | Tour de Suisse 2023 stage 4 - Skjelmose leads race into explosive summit finish

Preview. After taking the stage victory, Mattias Skjelmose has taken the lead of the Tour de Suisse and on stage 4 he will be put to the test as the riders find an explosive and difficult uphill finish.

Stage 4 to Leukerbad is an explosive day. The Tour de Suisse has used this finale in recent years and it's a very difficult and unpredictable one. It feature a long climb, but the final ones are shorter and less consistent. It's an explosive finale which will provide another battle between the climbers. Pan-flat over it's entire first 80 kilometers, but then it changes.

Departure and arrival times (estimated CET):

- June 14 - Stage 4: Monthey - Leukerbad, 152.5km. From 12:40 p.m. to 4:35 p.m.

The riders have seen the ascent to Crans-Montana recently at the Giro d'Italia, this is a different road up it however. It will pass by the Giro finish line but have it's summit a little above, it's 14.6 kilometers in total averaging 6.7%. It sends with 56 kilometers to go but should just be a warm-up, most likely the same as was the case over in May.

A very technical descent follows, with a third category right after leaving Sierre. The riders will then have positioning fight into the bottom of the final set of climbs.

Whilst not named, the true climb to mention in the day is the first part of the Höhenweg. It's 7.8 kilometers at 8.6% and features plenty hairpins. it's a climb that has attacking written all over, the following kilometers will be hard to chase and the decisive moves could come here. It summits with 14 kilometers to go, a short descent follows.

Then into the summit of the climb there are two small consecutive hilltops separated by a small plateau, they are 2.7Km at 7.6% and it's final 3 kilometers average around 6%, with a 12% ramp at it's summit with just under 4 kilometers to go.

A very short but steep descent follows (*profile contains GPS error), and then the final rise to the line in Leukerbad is 1.2 kilometers long at 5.1%.

The Weather

Some wind from the north won't be favourable for the attackers. A headwind throughout some of the final kilometers, certainly not the best of news for those looking to attack. There may be some rain too on the day which will definitely make the descents more sketchy.

The Favourites

Mattias Skjelmose - Skjelmose has ridden into a great victory and is in a good position to win the race. Yellow will now be his priority, he can afford to race defensively here. He has the best climbing legs perhaps, and in these short ascents he should be equally as comfortable.

Remco Evenepoel - We have now established that Evenepoel isn't in his best form. However he's not bad by any means, this summit finish suited him well, but the explosive terrain of tomorrow is even more dangerous if he goes off the front. He won't be as hard to follow as usual, but he can get into the lead if he plays his cards right.

Felix Gall - Gall has been evolving quite well and today has shown once again how high he's reaching within the World Tour. He'll be a serious contender to take the win, because I argue he rides even better in these types of climbs. In case of a sprint he equally has the power, although unfortunately for him so do many other of the best climbers in the race.

The headwind will likely mean less attacks, or less effects if they're to happen. This could eventually affect the outcome of the day and lead to a late sprint. The toughest climb will be 14 kilometers away from the finish. Pello Bilbao can become a great favourite because of this, taking into consideration how strongly he's ridden already today in the longer climb.

Others have ridden well and can benefit from a conservative day here, there are plenty strong puncheurs in the field. Tom Pidcock, Dylan Teuns, Max Schachmann, Jonathan Narváez and Rui Costa will be some of them. Then, if they find themselves in a better day, the likes of Sergio Higuita, Alex Aranburu and Neilson Powless could also ride into a sprint victory. Marc Hirschi has been showing great form recently and could also be quite a dangerous contender for this day, with the freedom as he's not fighting for the GC.

Of course there will be other strong climbers who can make the difference. These won't have as much explosivity so it'll be harder to get away, but simultaneously they may get chances to sneak away without response. Maybe Juan Ayuso won't as he stands very high in the GC... Cian Uijtdebroeks, Wilco Kelderman, Rigoberto Uran, Magnus Sheffield and Romain Bardet all performed well today and will be among those names tomorrow, whilst Ion Izagirre could also take the chance in a rainy day.

Prediction Tour de Suisse 2023 stage 4:

*** Mattias Skjelmose, Felix Gall
** Remco Evenepoel, Juan Ayuso, Pello Bilbao, Tom Pidcock
* Neilson Powless, Marc Hirschi, Rui Costa, Cian Uijtdebroeks, Wilco Kelderman, Rigoberto Uran, Romain Bardet

Pick: Mattias Skjelmose