A day after the race of truth, the 2025 Tour de France returns to open roads and rolling climbs on a lumpy 201.5km route from Bayeux to Vire Normandie. It’s a tough test in Norman Switzerland, featuring over 3,500 metres of elevation gain and six categorised climbs. With a punishing kick to the line and tired legs all round, this could be the first real war of attrition – and a day for the breakaway.
The route – Long, rolling and ripe for escapees
Stage 6 heads inland from the historic tapestry town of Bayeux, and its layout mirrors the narrative flow of the medieval embroidery housed there. Just as William the Conqueror crossed the Channel early in the story, this Tour remains in its opening chapters, but the drama is beginning to rise.
The terrain in this part of Normandy earns its ‘Swiss’ nickname with wooded gorges and a constantly undulating profile. None of the climbs are alpine in scale, but the repetition will hurt – and at 201.5km, this is the second-longest stage of the race.
The day includes six categorised climbs, most of them third category:
- Côte de Mont Pinçon (cat. 3), km 35.5
- Côte de la Rançonnière (cat. 3), km 56
- Côte de Mortain Cote 314 (cat. 3), km 138
- Côte de Juvigny-le-Tertre (cat. 3), km 154.5
- Côte de Vaudry (cat. 4), km 197.1
The final climb, Côte de Vaudry, is just 1.2km at 7.2%, but with only 4km remaining, it could be the perfect launchpad. However, the finish in Vire Normandie adds another sting: a steep uphill drag averaging over 10% for 700 metres to the line. It’s not a pure puncheur finish – it’s a tough effort after 200km of wearing terrain.
Key contenders – Puncheurs, attackers, and GC men all in the mix
After a dominant win in the time trial, Remco Evenepoel has closed the gap in the general classification and will be keen to stay out of trouble. His ability on short climbs means he’ll feature if it comes back together. The same goes for Tadej Pogačar, who now leads the race and continues to look calm and clinical. He may not want to chase too hard, though, especially with two tricky summit finishes coming up.
Mathieu van der Poel, newly relieved of the yellow jersey, remains a contender on these punchy stages, while Jonas Vingegaard may look to reset his Tour after an underwhelming time trial. His teammate, Matteo Jorgenson, continues to rise and will be dangerous if given freedom. Oscar Onley is another quiet climber who could surprise again.
Kévin Vauquelin, who was born in Bayeux and won a stage last year, will be especially motivated. The finish suits him, and this is his home stage – a rare opportunity to race on roads he knows intimately.
But the parcours suggests it’s a breakaway day. UAE may not want to burn matches defending yellow on such a gruelling day, and the composition of the escape will be critical. Look to Romain Grégoire and Valentin Madouas from Groupama-FDJ, Julian Alaphilippe if he feels good, and riders like Thibau Nys, Ben Healy, Wout van Aert or Aurélien Paret-Peintre to animate it. There’s no shortage of punchy climbers waiting for a free day.
What’s on offer
Date: Thursday, 10th July
Distance: 201.5km
Start: Bayeux
Finish: Vire Normandie
Intermediate sprint: Villers-Bocage (km 22.2)
Climbs: 6 categorised – Mont Pinçon, Rançonnière, Mortain, Juvigny-le-Tertre, Vaudry
Prediction
With over 3,500 metres of climbing and few teams likely to want to control all day, we expect the breakaway to survive. Neilson Powless will be eying up the finale, which is perfect for his attacking style. If the big guns come out to play again it’s hard to look past another Tadej Pogacar vs Mathieu van der Poel battle.
