The recent unveiling of the 2025 Tour de France route has inevitably heralded much debate about next yearโs potential winner. There are six mountain stages in total, including five mountain finishes at Hautacam, Luchon-Superbagnรจres, Mont Ventoux, Courchevel Col de la Loze, and La Plagne.
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ToggleThe Col de la Loze (2,304m) marks the highest point of a Tour that includes climbs in the Massif Central, Pyrenees, Alps, and the Jura. That equates to an impressive 51,550m of elevation pain. Happily, after its Olympics-forced sojourn, the final stage returns to Paris and its customary cobbled Champs-Elysees chase.
The Usual Suspects
All eyes will no doubt be on last yearโs champion, Tadej Pogacar, as well as the 2023 victor, Jonas Vingegaard. Between them, the two riders have won the last five Tours. Beyond that, only the exciting young Belgian Remco Evenepoel, and the experienced Primoลพ Rogliฤ look capable of mounting any kind of serious threat.
Fans of the race can keep an eye on the various online betting sites for up-to-date odds and favourites to win the competition. Below is our list of the top cyclists to watch at next year’s event.
Tadej Pogacar
The Slovenian is unsurprisingly the overwhelming favourite to claim a fourth yellow jersey in 2025. Despite three Tour wins and two second-place finishes in the last five years, 26-year-old Pogacar is arguably not yet at the peak of his powers.
A stunning 2024 season saw him take 25 wins in only 58 race days. That impressive feat included wins at Liรจge-Bastogne-Liรจge, Il Lombardia, Giro d’Italia, Tour de France, and the UCI World Championships. It was, as Tadej Pogaฤar said โas close as I could come to a perfect season.โ
Pogacar certainly benefitted from his closest rival Vingegaard suffering an awful crash in the Itzulia Basque Country, and things will certainly be closer in 2025, but itโs hard to see anyone else in yellow on the Champs-Elysees.
Jonas Vingegaard
The 27-year-old will be desperate to reclaim the title that he lost last year and add a third yellow jersey to his collection. It is not unreasonable to suggest that finishing second in 2024 after his horrendous crash in April, was nothing short of astonishing.
Fully fit, the Dane will no doubt push Pogacar all the way, and fans can look forward to more pulsating head-to-head battles between the pair. Few will forget Vingegaard cracking his rival on the Col du Granon and at Hautacam in 2022, and repeating the feat on the Col de la Loze in 2023.
Remco Evenepoel
The Belgian rider claimed his first Grand Tour win in 2022 with victory in the Vuelta a Espaรฑa. The double world champion and two-time Monument winner went on to complete his first ever Tour de France in 2024, finishing third and claiming the white young rider’s jersey.
The 24-year-old finished over 9 minutes down on Pogaฤar, which means heโll need to find another level if heโs going to challenge for the top spot. He definitely has the talent, but 2025 may be a year too soon for the SoudalโQuick-Step team leader.
Primoลพ Rogliฤ
Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe team leader Primoลพ Rogliฤ, came agonisingly close to winning the 2020 Tour de France before succumbing to fellow countryman Pogacar by 59 seconds. However, 2024 saw him suffer his third DNF in a row at the Tour following two crashes in two days.
Despite that disappointment, the Slovenianโs season was an impressive one, with wins at the Critรฉrium du Dauphinรฉ and the Vuelta a Espaรฑa to add to his 2023 Giro DโItalia victory. If Rogliฤ can stay clear of the inevitable first-week crashes, he has the experience and newfound form to challenge.
Young Names to Watch Out For
While itโs hard to look past the main GC contenders, there are several young riders whose ability and form warrants a mention as potential podium finishers.
Mattias Skjelmose
The 24-year-old Dane was one of the best-performing riders in 2023, claiming his first World Tour stage win and overall victory in the Tour de Suisse. There were also top 10 finishes in all three Classics, including a second-place finish at La Flรจche Wallonne, behind only the all-conquering Tadej Pogaฤar.
Skjelmose finished 5th overall at the 2024 Vuelta a Espana earlier this year, proving his ability to compete over three gruelling weeks of cycling. Many at his Lidl-Trek team believe next yearโs Tour route suits him well, making him one to watch out for.
Carlos Rodrรญguez
The Ineos Grenadiers rider is still only 23 years of age and already has an impressive fifth-place finish from his Tour debut in 2023, finishing just over two minutes away from the third spot. While the 2024 Tour proved a disappointment, with a 7th place finish some fifteen minutes off third, the Spaniard did secure a win at the Tour de Romandie. A second-place finish at the Tour of the Basque Country, and fourth at the Critรฉrium du Dauphinรฉ were also highlights.
Rodrรญguez will go into next years Tour as team Ineos main GC contender, and at only 23 years of age and with two Tours under his belt, he cannot be discounted.
Main photo credit: Getty