The first ten stages of the 2025 Tour de France may look tame at first glance, but riders know better. Fred Wright believes the early action will be anything but dull, with the potential for bonus seconds, crosswinds, and puncheur-friendly terrain set to create tension from the gun. The Classics-style nature of several stages, especially in the first week, is expected to force the GC contenders into action far earlier than usual.
“The first week at the Tour is going to be so exciting,” said Wright. “That’s because some of those early stages will really open up the race. I can see Tadej maybe trying to gain bonus seconds on Jonas. That might mean he ends up winning a few of the stages but none of them are hard enough that other guys won’t also be in the mix too. That’s what we as a team will probably be hoping for in the first ten days or so too.”
Wright admitted that he initially underestimated the parcours when looking at the roadbook, but changed his view once he studied the route in detail.
“From what I can see in the first ten days, I think it’s going to make for some f*****g amazing racing. I think it’s going to be more of a spectacle than everyone thinks with Tadej not just walking all over everyone. I had the exact same initial thought as everyone else, I looked at the roadbook and thought there were a lot of flat, sprint-type stages in the first ten days, but it really isn’t like that. It’s going to be much harder than everyone thinks, there’s a lot of Classics-style, hilly stages in there, a bit like some of the Ardennes Classics.”
Wright heads into the Tour fresh from an encouraging performance at the Critérium du Dauphiné, where he claimed two top ten finishes and attacked on multiple stages. His second place behind Jonathan Milan in Issoire was a clear sign he can mix it up when the terrain suits.
“We’ve got our goals as a team, but personally I’ve already looked at it and there are a few stages that I’ve got in mind which will definitely be good days for me to try something in the breakaway. How I was racing the Dauphiné is how I’ll approach the Tour, it’s the level I want to be at and how I want to go about searching for opportunities, it’s really exciting for me. I was really in my element for those first few days at the Dauphiné, so I’m ready for this now and just want to keep building on what I’ve been doing, hopefully I can have a successful Tour.”
While Wright is energised by what’s coming, Geraint Thomas sounds far less enthusiastic. The Ineos Grenadiers rider, who is preparing for his final Tour de France, has been candid about how nervous the opening week makes him.
“It’s more the roads, you’ve got some narrow roads, it could be pretty windy at times. Everyone knows the first week of the Tour is stressful, this is just prime stress levels at ten out of ten… to be honest, I’m not really looking forward to that bit. I would have preferred a couple of hard days like last year, it just settles everyone down then.”
Thomas crashed out of the Tour de Suisse and is still building back to full fitness, but expects to be on the start line in Lille. Whether he can avoid the mayhem of the first week remains to be seen. Either way, for riders like Fred Wright, the early chaos could offer the perfect launchpad.
