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2017 Criterium du Dauphine: Stage 7 live race updates, blog

10th June, 2017
Start: Aoste (6:05pm AEST)
Finish: Alpe d'Huez (12:20am AEST)
TV: Live, Eurosport and SBS (9:30pm AEST)
Online: Live, Foxtel Go and SBS Cycling Central
Distance: 168km

Top ten general classification
1. Richie Porte (BMC) @ 20:52:34
2. Chris Froome (Sky) + 0:39
3. Jakob Fuglsang (Astana) + 1:15
4. Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) + 1:20
5. Fabio Aru (Astana) + 1:24
6. Alberto Contador (Trek) + 1:47
7. Daniel Martin (Quick-Step Floors) + 2:14
8. Emanuel Buchmann (Bora) + 2:30
9. Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale) + 2:49
10. Rafael Valls (Lotto-Soudal) + 3:16
Chris Froome is the favourite to take a stage win today. (Tour de Yorkshire)
Expert
10th June, 2017
124
2052 Reads

Australian Richie Porte will be out to defend his yellow jersey in Stage 7 of the Criterium du Dauphine, as the peloton take on the famous Alpe d’Huez. Join The Roar for live coverage and updates from 9:20pm (AEST).

Porte rose to the top of the pile of general classification riders during an individual time trial on Stage 4, then finished in the front group yesterday on the first big mountains stage of the race to formally take the race lead ahead of Thomas De Gendt as the race blew apart.

Astana’s Jakob Fuglsang won the stage and moved into third on GC, with Chris Froome also in the front group at second, 39 seconds behind Porte, but it wasn’t such a good day for most of the other contenders.

Alejandro Valverde, Fabio Aru and Alberto Contador are all now well over a minute behind, while Daniel Martin, Romain Bardet and Orica-Scott duo Simon Yates and Esteban Chavez are all going to need to attack big if they want to finish on the podium.

Stage 7 sets out in Aoste and could be a perfect day for the breakaway, with the Alpe d’Huez being climbed from the opposite side.

After 25 kilometres of more or less flat roads, they will start off light with the Category 4 Cote de Berland, but then it’s onto the Col du Cucheron and the Category 1 Col de Porte (not a spelling mistake) which is 7.5 kilometres at 6.7 per cent.

If they are able to establish early, the breakaway should build a heavy lead and continue to increase it as the race then goes across about 80 kilometres of mainly flat valley roads.

The Category 2 Cote de Garcin will kick off the next procession of climbs, before the main feast of the day – the 15.3-kilometre, 6.9 per cent, hors categorie Col de Sarene – greets the riders.

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The narrow and windy climb was used as a descent in the 100th edition of the Tour de France. Instead of turning onto the descent though, the peloton will go a short way down, then onto the final climb up to the top of d’Huez, which only clocks in at 3.7 kilometres – a short but brutal climb given the average gradient of 7.2 per cent.

Prediction
There are likely to be two races tonight. The breakaway should get a big gap and may run away with the stage win – watch out for Warren Barguil who has dropped 18 minutes, Jelle Vanendert and Thomas Voeckler.

As for the general classification, Porte will stick like glue to the wheel of Froome, attacks will go early on the Sarene, but none will be able to make too much of an indent.

Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of Stage 7 from 9:20pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment below.

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