The seventeenth stage of the 2025 Tour de France leads the peloton to Valence. The attackers will undoubtedly try their luck again in this transition stage, but the sprinters will also be eyeing the win. For many of them, this is the last chance to strike once more. Will we see a new clash between Jonathan Milan and Tim Merlier? Cyclingflash takes a look ahead!
The seventeenth stage starts in Bollène. After a papal start—Bollène used to be part of the Papal States; although it isn’t officially considered a successor to Vatican City, it’s more or less so—the place where Ivo Van Damme passed away (perhaps the best Belgian athlete ever), the peloton faces a hilly stage with two somewhat longer climbs. These, however, are not too challenging. The summit of the Col de Tartaiquille (3.9 km at 3.5%), the last categorized climb of the day, lies 45 kilometers from the finish.
After that, the route continues over rolling terrain towards the finish. We will no doubt see breakaway riders out front, but unless their lead is very comfortable, they will be constantly visible within the last eight kilometers. This section runs along a straight road to Valence until a final sharp turn in the last kilometer.
For those interested: within seven hours you can reach Valence from Amsterdam Central Station with one transfer in Paris. A round-trip ticket (departing Tuesday, July 22, returning Thursday, July 24) for an adult costs 159 euros, but then you get to experience a day at the Tour. From Brussels Midi, you can make the same journey for 93.50 euros in four and a half hours to the city of former star Charly Mottet, whose daughter unfortunately passed away in 2020. Also, don’t forget to try the local delicacy Suisse de Valence, inspired by the Swiss Guard that protects the pope. So the circle closes once again.
Third week, hilly terrain, and a peloton full of attackers. In principle, all the ingredients are present to make the seventeenth stage a typical breakaway day. Were it not also for the many sprinters who want to fight for the stage win in Valence. For many of them, this is their last chance. Only two mountain stages remain in the Alps, one much tougher transitional stage to Pontarlier, and then the final stage to Paris, with three cobbled climbs to Montmartre. For the fast men still chasing victories, it has to happen now.
Tim Merlier - photo: Cor Vos
Controlling the race will not be easy, but the teams of the two best sprinters in this Tour will certainly try. We mean, of course, the teams of Jonathan Milan and Tim Merlier, Lidl-Trek and Soudal Quick-Step respectively. For Milan, it is especially important that the stage ends in a sprint in Valence, as only then can he extend his lead in the battle for the green jersey over Tadej Pogačar, who will undoubtedly pick up points during the three Alpine stages. Merlier and Soudal Quick-Step will be looking to continue the success of Valentin Paret-Peintre, who partially eased the disappointment of the withdrawal of their GC leader Remco Evenepoel by winning on Mont Ventoux.
If it does come down to a sprint, Tim Merlier has a slight advantage over Milan. After all, the Belgian has already won twice in this Tour, while the Italian currently has one victory. Moreover, Merlier may have been able to conserve more energy since his last win in Châteauroux, while Milan had to fight daily to collect points for the green jersey.
Jonathan Milan - photo: Cor Vos
Besides Soudal Quick-Step and Lidl-Trek, Intermarché-Wanty will also want a sprint and will likely contribute to the chase. Their best chance for a stage win remains Biniam Girmay. The Eritrean doesn’t possess the flash he had last year, but as a strong climbing sprinter, he still has two opportunities in the final week: on the last day in Paris and now in Valence. Especially if Merlier and Milan struggle on the challenging route, Girmay could take advantage and secure that coveted stage victory.
Alpecin-Deceuninck had already racked up two stage wins in the first two days of this Tour. However, the two big stars—Jasper Philipsen and Mathieu van der Poel—have since left the race. Therefore, it will be up to Kaden Groves to bring success to the team. The Australian has already won stages in the Giro (two) and Vuelta (seven), but in his first Tour, he has only achieved a third place so far. That was in Laval, on a finish that suited him better. At the time, there was the idea that Groves could grow into the race even more. We shall see.
Biniam Girmay - photo: Cor Vos
Wout van Aert can approach this stage in several ways. He may opt for an attack, but the Belgian also has a chance if it comes down to a 'regular' sprint. After all, he was second behind Milan in Laval, although that was a classic Van Aert type of finish. Another rider capable of winning either from the break or in the sprint is Van Aert’s compatriot Arnaud De Lie. The 23-year-old Lotto rider seems to have regained his form after a (once again) difficult spring. He has already placed fifth, fourth, and third in this Tour. Will the Stier van Lescheret step up one or even two places?
As for the sprinters, we also mention Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco AlUla), Tobias Lund Andresen, Pavel Bittner (both Picnic PostNL), Paul Penhoët (Groupama-FDJ), Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain Victorious), Jordi Meeus, Danny van Poppel (both Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Alberto Dainese (Tudor), Arnaud Démare (Arkéa-B&B Hotels), Stian Fredheim (Uno-X Mobility), and Pascal Ackermann (Israel-Premier Tech).
Wout van Aert - photo: Cor Vos
Should there be an uncontrollable chaos early on resulting in a large breakaway—which is certainly not impossible—we could see a battle among the escapees. In that case, we especially mark Jonas Abrahamsen and Mauro Schmid, who finished first and second on the stage to Toulouse. Also, keep an eye on Quinn Simmons, who seizes every opportunity to attack in this Tour. The last star goes to the likewise very aggressive Axel Laurance.
Other attackers to watch include: Pascal Eenkhoorn (Soudal Quick-Step), Kasper Asgreen, Michael Valgren (EF Education-EasyPost), Will Barta (Movistar), Thibau Nys, Jasper Stuyven (Lidl-Trek), Victor Campenaerts (Visma | Lease a Bike), Valentin Madouas (Groupama-FDJ), Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious), Matteo Trentin (Tudor), Luke Plapp (Jayco AlUla), Bruno Armirail (Decathlon AG2R), Davide Ballerini, Mike Teunissen (XDS Astana), Alexey Lutsenko (Israel Premier Tech), and Laurenz Rex (Intermarché-Wanty).
At the start in Bollène, it will be dry and sunny, but in the afternoon, rain and possibly some thunderstorms are expected in the finish town of Valence. It remains to be seen whether the riders will stay completely dry. It won’t be cold, though: the temperature should still be around 25 degrees Celsius by evening. The wind direction (2 Beaufort) will shift from north to west during the afternoon.
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Bollène) Valence)
