WE’RE only just over the halfway point of the Tour de France, but English superstar Chris Froome is fast becoming unbackable to salute for the third time in the world’s biggest cycling race.
The 2013 and ’15 Tour champion has been crunched in to $1.44 with WilliamHill.com.
With the riders bombarded by howling crosswinds on the stage 11 ride from Carcassonne to Montpellier, Tinkoff’s Peter Sagan took his second stage of the Tour overnight.
But Froome came through in second place and extended his lead to 28 seconds over Orica-BikeExchange’s Adam Yates – a 12 second gain.
A group of four racers broke away from the peloton and battled it out toward the finish of stage 11, with Sagan holding off Froome in the final chase while his Tinkoff teammate, Maciej Bodnar, finished behind them.
Australia’s best hope, Richie Porte, finished with the peloton six seconds back.
He is 14th in the general classification, some 2.22 back – most of that due to a puncture on stage two that cost him nearly two minutes.
Froome was upbeat after pushing himself last night.
“I was asking myself the question today in those last 10km of whether it was worth spending that energy,” Froome said.
“I think in this moment I really am going to try and take any advantage I can get, especially knowing that Nairo (Quintana) in particular is really strong in the third week.
“For the time being, I’m just enjoying my racing.
“It’s bike racing at its best.
“I attack downhill and on the flat just because I enjoy it.
“I’m not forced to.”
Sagan was thrilled with his second stage win.
“I felt good today,” he said.
“For sure, it was not a boring stage. It was stressful from the start. Sky was all the time at the front, we were always at the front. It was always dangerous.
“This was a nice stage for the Tour de France, no?
“I’ve been in the yellow, green and won stages. It was a very good stage for me and I think it was also impressive for people in front of the TV.”
He had a dig at Froome after making him work hard in the chase.
“Froome did everything he could,” Sagan said after the race.
“(Geraint) Thomas was dropped at 600 metres out.
“I thought that maybe Froome would not sprint.
“I led for Bodnar, I wanted him to win, but then Chris started sprinting and I had to go for the win.
“Froome made a big effort and spent a lot of energy.
“I hope tomorrow that he has the energy because it’s going to go fast on the climb, for sure.
“I can only say good luck to Froome.”
Second favourite Nairo Quintana, who now sits 35 seconds back from Froome, had plenty of trouble with the crosswinds and slammed race organisers for what he called his “most difficult stage of the Tour”.
“It was a difficult day for me,” the Colombian said.
“There was a lot of wind and it was all flat.
“And the sprinters were favoured.
“Froome took a few seconds by taking advantage of the moment, but I want to remain positive.
“We didn’t crash, while it was very nervous.
“A very flat day with lots of wind, where even the sprinters lost the opportunity to fight for the stage.
“Organisers are thinking about the show, but we take chances with our lives every day and especially in stages like this.
“They look for a certain type of spectacle but without realising the type of dangers they send us into.
“We’re all risking our lives every day and they need to think more about stages like this.”
It seems organisers, though, have listened to the $3.25 chance’s concerns, with the 12th stage up Mont Ventoux shortened by six kilometres due to forecast high winds.
Riders will still cop some of the steepest sections of the ascent and Froome – who won the stage last year – said falling short of the summit won’t necessarily make it any easier for racers.
“To be honest I don’t think the ascent to the Ventoux being shortened will change the race much,” Froome said.
“Climbing to the Chalet Reynard is already very hard and there might be even more wind than today, with even more possibilities for the bunch to split before the climb.
“The change of finale will only make the racing more intense because it will be shorter. To win even at halfway to the Mont Ventoux remains something special.”
Froome is the favourite to win stage 12 for the second time in a row, at $3.25 with CrownBet.com.au, ahead of Quintana at $4.50, with Porte next best out to $13.
Ventoux has a significant place in Tour folklore. Lance Armstrong never conquered the stage, appearing to let Italian Marco Pantani win in 2000.
It has also been deadly, claiming the life of British cyclist Tommy Simpson, who collapsed and died near the summit in 1967.
Tour de France stage 12 winner market
Chris Froome ($3.25)
Nairo Quintana ($4.50)
Thibaut Pinot ($15)
Rafal Majka ($17)
Adam Yates ($21)
Daniel Martin ($21)
Romain Bardet ($26)
Fabio Aru ($34)
Joaquim Rodriguez ($34)
Sergio Henao ($34)
Alejandro Valverde ($41)
Rui Costa ($41)
Vincenzo Nibali ($41)
Daniel Navarro ($51)
Mikel Landa ($51)
Bauke Mollema ($67)
Pierre Rolland ($67)
Stephen Cummings ($67)
Thomas De Gendt ($67)
Diego Rosa ($81)
Jarlinson Pantano ($81)
Tejay Van Garderen ($81)
Odds provided by CrownBet.com
2016 Tour de France outright betting
Chris Froome ($1.44)
Nairo Quintana ($3.25)
Richie Porte ($26)
Adam Yates ($34)
Tejay van Garderen ($41)
Daniel Martin ($41)
Fabio Aru ($51)
Romain Bardet ($51)
Alejandro Valverde ($101)
Bauke Mollema ($101)
Geraint Thomas ($151)
Joaquim Rodriguez ($151)
Roman Kreuziger ($151)
Pierre Rolland ($251)
Vincenzo Nibali ($301)
Warren Barguil ($401)
Thibaut Pinot ($501)
Rafal Majka ($501)
Mikel Landa ($1001)
Tom Dumoulin ($1001)
Julian Alaphilippe ($1001)
Odds provided by WilliamHill.com