Stage 18Start: Salies-de Bearn
End: Bordeaux
Length: 198 km
Difficulty Profile (1-10): 1
On paper, this may just be the easiest stage of the entire Tour de France. Sure, there is the whole yellow jersey thing going on that we must keep an eye on, but I find it nearly impossible that Schleck can pull back/Contador can extend any time on a stage as flat as this one. Instead, this will surely be a day for the sprinters. The sprinters will be more than happy to take it, as they havn't had that many this year. This will be one of the crucial finishes for the green jersey race. At this point, it is down to 3 men in contention. The consistent Hushovd that always gets points but not so many high finishes, the speedy Petacchi who is in great position behind Hushovd, or Mark Cavendish, who is a good number of points behind but can make up ground with a win. I see almost no chance a breakaway survives on a stage like this, and it should be a welcomed break to many before tomorrow's grueling time trial.
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