It could have been an easier day but it was a mad dash in the last 40km as sprinters' teams panicked when they realized they might not catch the breakaway. I've seen very tired legs in the bunch, given the last three stages we've just done. Many people were hoping for an easy day but it didn't happen. The heat was close to 40°. We were asking for bidons and there wasn't enough. In a day like this, I'd like to feel safe at the 3km to go mark and then give way to the sprinters but in the finale, everyone wanted to be at the front: lead out men for their sprinter, team-mates of GC riders, then it was chaos at the bottom of the final climb. All you need is one GC guy to go to the front and everyone has to go up there as well.
Typical sprinters want more opportunities but I don't have any complain about the route. Seeing that even today some riders have tried to attack me in a short climb like this, it means they'll try more tomorrow. Mende is a 3-km climb where big gaps can be expected. Hopefully I'll get through without any major problem.
Interview
July 17
th
2015
- 19:02
Chris Froome: "I expect big gaps tomorrow"
