Tour de France 2014 Favourites Stage 9: Breakaway boys to make it to the end?

Tailor-made for a breakaway? Three cat. 3 climbs, two cat. 2's and one cat. 1 mean it's a tough day in the saddle and would seem perfect for a large breakaway with the usual suspects like Voeckler, Riblon or Weening willing to take part. (Slideshow route/profile)

It’s the kind of route where GC men may choose to keep their powder dry for tougher tests ahead. We may see who is certainly not in contention for overall honours however.

A rider who may weigh up the value of stage wins over GC placement is Michal Kwiatkowski. While the Pole has already finished 11th meaning a top-10 is well within his capabilities – he may be better served eyeing up stages like today to leave his mark on the race.

From the other end of the spectrum, Peter Sagan may eye a breakaway win given his chances of stage wins will be limited against the faster sprinters on flat stages. Sagan can climb well and if he ends up in a breakaway he would be one of the strongest riders. Kwiatkowski went head-to-head with Sagan this year at Strade Bianche, could we see a repeat on stage 9 of this year’s Tour?