Granada > Granada 191km The Spanish road race starts in Granada, heads east towards Gaudix, and then returns to Granada. The lap circuit around the hills of Guadix is brutal, this is going to be an incredibly selective day. As usual, all eyes will be on Movistar, anything but a win will be seen as failure.

Binche > Binche 230km For some reason the GPX file I used says 250km but I’m reliably informed it’s 230km. 230km, roasting hot and a lap circuit in Binche, this is going to be very hard. De Lie is the defending champion, but after a disappointing year, can he make good on his promise? Looking to stop him will be the combined strength of Alpecin and QuickStep.

Aberystwyth > Aberystwyth 191km This year the British road race takes place in Wales, down in Aberystwyth, home of Stevie Williams, so it’s a real shame that Stevie is injured and unable to compete. Ethan Hayter is the defending champion, but now he’ll find out how hard it is to win this race when you don’t ride for Ineos. In terms of difficulty, it’s one the easier routes to be used in the last few years.

Beckenried > Stockhütte 10.1km ITT It’s the final stage and what a monster of a climb awaits the riders. Almeida took the win today, he now sits 33 seconds behind Vauquelin, he’ll start as the huge favourite to win the stage and GC. What happened in the opening stage has helped the race, it’s been a fun week to watch, maybe UAE should lose time at the start of every stage race. 

Neuhausen am Rheinfall > Emmetten 207km Another punchy stage for the riders to get their teeth stuck into. At 207km, it’s the longest in the race, 3113m of climbing is the second most this week. It’s a tough stage, but not as hard as some of the other GC days. With Almeida the huge favourite for Sunday’s TT, this is the last chance for everyone else to try and get a stage win.

Chur > Neuhausen am Rheinfall 188km This is a chance for the sprinters, but it’s not going to be easy. After a couple of tough days in the mountains, there’s going to be quite a few tired legs in the peloton.

La Punt > Santa Maria in Calanca 184km Today was a demonstration by Almeida, taking back a sizeable chunk of time on GC, allowing UAE to rest easy tonight. Stage 5 is the hardest in the race with almost 3800m of climbing, so it’s another chance for GC riders to take swings at each other, but the break will also sniff a chance of taking the win.

Heiden > Piuro (Valchiavenna) 193km What a brilliant win for Quinn Simmons. The break won despite Tudor trying to bring it back, it was a beautiful moment watching Quinn dedicate his win to the memory of Gino. I’m not going to labour the point as it’s not my grief, I’m delighted that Quinn had this moment.  Okay, time to look at stage 4.

Aarau > Heiden 194km Easy stage with a hard finish. Sunday’s stage has had a massive impact on the GC, gaps are huge which could be good news for the break. Sprint teams won’t control this stage, FDJ will have to ride as they are in yellow, but if there’s not a threat in the move, I don’t see any reason for them to chase hard to bring it back. The finish is very punchy, I’m not sure if any team will back their finisher and chase the break.

Aarau > Schwarzsee 178km The 2nd stage of the Tour de Suisse is the most sprinter friendly day of the week. Just under 2400m of climbing means it’s not flat, but this could well be the only opportunity for fast men this week. Jordi Meeus and Arnaud De Lie are the only big-name sprinters in the race, I would expect to see Red Bull – Bora and Lotto trying to set this one up.