With the Tour de France upon us, Cyclingnews takes a closer look in this video at the key contenders and riders that most likely to fill the race's top 10 places in Paris come July 29.
The favourite has to remain defending champion Chris Froome (Team Sky), despite the investigation following his the adverse analytical finding for salbutamol at last year's Vuelta a Espana, which he won. Froome then went on to win this year's Giro d'Italia with an audacious move in the Dolomites, following what hadn't been the most convincing first two thirds of the race, when he struggled to find form and was the victim of multiple crashes.
His friend and former Sky teammate Richie Porte (BMC Racing) is arguably the man most likely to unseat Froome, but another former Sky man in Mikel Landa will also cause problems. Landa finished fourth in 2017 while riding in Froome's service, but has joined Movistar for 2018, and attacks the Tour as joint leader with another danger man in Colombian climbing ace Nairo Quintana.
AG2R La Mondiale leader Romain Bardet's rise and rise at the Tour each year, culminating in third place overall in 2017, means that the Frenchman will be a podium danger again. France are desperate for their first winner since Bernard Hinault in 1985. Bardet is the man to break the duck. Rigoberto Uran (EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale) quietly rode his way into second place at last year's Tour, and although he may not be on everyone's lips for the win this year, the Colombian will be looking wistfully at the top step of the podium.
To see who else made the cut, put this virtual VHS into the video player, sit back, and enjoy our Top 10 riders to watch at this year's Tour.
Follow it all live and uninterrupted on Eurosport player. Find out more here.
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Born in Ireland to a cycling family and later moved to the Isle of Man, so there was no surprise when I got into the sport. Studied sports journalism at university before going on to do a Masters in sports broadcast. After university I spent three months interning at Eurosport, where I covered the Tour de France. In 2012 I started at Procycling Magazine, before becoming the deputy editor of Procycling Week. I then joined Cyclingnews, in December 2013.
