Paris - Nice 2024: GC Favourites

[Underneath text was written before the start of the Race to the Sun and has not been updated]

Last year, Roglic and Evenepoel first met each other in the Volta a Catalunya, which turned into one of the most intriguing GC battles of the entire season. They went at each other throat’s from day one and eventually Roglic won the GC with a 6 seconds margin. Both took two stages, so it was a draw in that respect.

Paris-Nice will be Roglic’ first race of the season, while Evenepoel has already one GC victory under his belt – Volta ao Algarve.

Paris-Nice is a highly-anticipated showdown with two of the best GC riders in the world. But, obviously, there are other riders eyeing up the yellow jersey as well. Last year’s Tour de Suisse winner Mattias Skjelmose, for instance. And Carlos Rodriguez. And Egan Bernal. And João Almeida. And David Gaudu. And Jay Vine. Therefore it could be that a third rider will race away with the bone…

The first time gaps are expected to open up in the team time trial on the third day of action. The subsequent stage is also interesting, as it’s a hilly race with an altitude gain of 3,300 metres and a punchy finish. The line is situated at Mont Brouilly, a 3 kilometres climb at 7.7% with several double digit ramps in the last kilometre.

The 6th stage is also a race to look forward to, although it remains to be seen if it’s GC batte material, as most elevation gain is clustered in the heart of the race. On the other hand, the last climb is a brutal test with several double digit ramps, while it goes all downhill from the summit.

The GC action is sure to catch fire on the penultimate day. The route takes in two big climbs in the final 60 kilometres. Firstly the Col Saint-Martin, which is a 7.5 kilometres test at 7.1%, and secondly the climb to the line in Aron. This is a similar toil – 7.3 kilometres at 7.2%.

Featuring five climbs, stage 8 is a short and explosive race in the mountains above Nice before a downhill finish onto the Promenade des Anglais in Nice. Similar routes have produced breathtaking races in recent years.

Favourites Paris-Nice 2024

**** Primoz Roglic, Remco Evenepoel
*** Egan Bernal, Mattias Skjelmose, João Almeida
** David Gaudu, Santiago Buitrago, Jay Vine, Carlos Rodriguez, Felix Gall
* Wilco Kelderman, Pello Bilbao, Luke Plapp, Ion Izagirre, Alexey Lutsenko