The clock is ticking for the fastmen. As the Tour de France heads into its decisive Alpine phase, Stage 17 could be the final lifeline for the sprinters.

Wednesday’s 160-km route from Bollène to Valence is a transitional stage on paper—but one that offers real opportunity. Two minor climbs punctuate the opening two-thirds of the day. That is, the Col du Pertuis (3.7 km at 6.6 per cent) at 66 km, and the Col de Tartaiguille (3.6 km at 3.5 per cent) at 117.

From there, the profile flattens out, giving sprint teams roughly 40 km to get organized and hunt down the break.

It may be the last proper bunch sprint of the race. While the Champs-Élysées traditionally delivers a drag race, this year’s finale includes multiple laps of the Montmartre climb—an added wrinkle that could undo the pure sprinters. If they want a stage win, hump day is the day.

If it comes down to a proper bunch gallop, look to another duel between Lidl–Trek’s Jonathan Milan and Soudal–QuickStep’s Tim Merlier. And Milan needs the win—not just for his palmarès, but for his kit. More on that below.

Stage 16: Ventoux nasty as ever

Tuesday’s summit finish on Mont Ventoux belonged to the breakaway. Valentin Paret-Peintre delivered France’s first stage win of this year’s Tour, outsprinting Ben Healy for a memorable victory atop the storied climb. The GC contenders played it cagey—Tadej Pogačar added two more seconds on Jonas Vingegaard, remain locked in a two-man fight for yellow. Although the duo did come close to spoiling the break’s day!

Pogačar is also inching closer to a feat achieved only once in men’s pro cycling: winning all three jerseys—yellow, polka dot and green. Milan is watching closely, with the world champion now just over 10 points behind. The Italian will need max points on Wednesday if he hopes to hang on to the green jersey that traditionally belongs to the sprinters.

Soooo…is Pogačar going to win yellow, green and polka dots?

Stage 17 should be fast—so the sprinters’ teams will need to keep things tight if they want to set up a bunch finish.

You can catch all the action on FloBikes.com. And as always, check in with Canadian Cycling Magazine for a detailed report on what went down.

The Tour may be entering its final stretch—but with several tough stages still to come, it’s far from over.

Pogačar has looked untouchable, but all it takes is one “I’m gone, I’m dead” day to change that. That may seem unlikely, but Vingegaard won’t stop swinging. The Visma–Lease a Bike rider launched four separate attacks on Ventoux, proving he’s still got plenty of fight in those little legs.