Tour De France Stage 4 predictions, betting tips, odds and free bets (July 5, 2016)

Tuesday, 05 July 2016 08:59
Written by David Bet

At 237.5km, Stage 4 (Saumur - Limoges) is the longest of the 2016 Tour de France and will be a tough battle between finisheurs and sprinters. Who will win? This article contains our Tour De France Stage 4 betting preview, best odds, free predictions on Winner and Head to Head, bookie bonuses & no deposit free bets!

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TOUR DE FRANCE STAGE 4 BETTING PREVIEW

Stage 4 is an almost completely flat stage but a tough uphill sprint will add to the complexity and put the pure sprinters at a disadvantage. The finish is uphill, but not steeply uphill. The last km starts with 500m of flat road, while the final 500m are uphill at around 5%. It will take precision timing to win, because uphill sprints are notoriously difficult to get right.

Mark Cavendish has won both flat sprints so far while the uphill sprint was won by Peter Sagan on Stage 2. The last 500m at 5% will make it a very tough finale and we are not sure that Cavendish can handle it. Of course, Peter Sagan can do it very well and we are not surprised to see him the odds on favourite for this stage. He is very good at positioning and this makes the Slovakian and he usually finds the wheel that he wants. He definetely doesn't need a strong leadout.

Andre Greipel was narrowly beaten by Cavendish on the line in Stage 3 but he is probably better suited to the terrain on Tuesday while Marcel Kittel disappointed once more on Monday's sprint, never positioning at the right position to really launch the sprint.

Michael Matthews and Bryan Coquard also have a real shot at victory in this kind of sprint. In fact, the finish here is a little reminiscent of Stage 4 in the 2015 Tour de Suisse, where Michael Matthews was able to overcome Peter Sagan in the closing stages. Coquard came from far back to take second in a stage at least year’s Paris-Nice and he has dominated uphill sprints in races like the Route du Sud in the past.

Edward Theuns is another specialist in these uphill sprints which he proved by winning the first stage of the Tour of Belgium while Sondre Holst Enger should have his best chance tomorrow.

Greg Van Avermaet gave up in the last kilometers of stage 2 but he could have save his legs for Tuesday's stage. John Degenkolb's form is very poor at the moment and he is still not fully competitive in the sprints.

Alexander Kristoff is also suited for this kind of sprints while Julian Alaphilippe was runner up to Sagan on Sunday and he can't be ruled out, even if he would prefer a tougher climb.

Dark horses?
Edvald Boasson Hagen, Samuel Domoulin, Alejandro Valverde, Cristophe Laporte and Davide Cimolai are our preferrend long shots.