Ardennes and a Mur
At 220 kilometers, this is the longest stage this year. There are 70 kilometers in Belgium before reaching the Ardennes—the range of hills that straddles the border with France. It’s a day that’s akin to the Flèche Wallonne classic, although it’s also a good one for long breakaways. The last 20 kilometers are hilly, while the finale is perfect for puncheurs like former Flèche winners Dylan Teuns (Bahrain) and Julian Alaphilippe (if he has recovered from his serious crash at Liège-Bastogne-Liège) or GC contenders Pogačar, Roglič and Aleksandr Vlasov (BORA-Hansgrohe).
There’s no Mur de Huy, but the Mur de Pulventeux has a 12.3-percent grade for almost a kilometer; it’s followed by 3 kilometers of flats and downhill before hitting the Cat. 4 climb to the finish at the Citadelle in Longwy. The 1.6-kilometer Côte des Religieuses is where Sagan narrowly won a 2017 stage from Matthews and Irish climber Dan Martin. But there was no preceding “wall” five years ago, so don’t expect a sprinter to win this time.