Tour de France: We weakened Team Sky, says Quintana

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Despite not being able to shake Chris Froome with several attacks on the penultimate and final climbs of the day, Nairo Quintana believes that he and his Movistar teammates finally cracked the seemingly unbreakable Team Sky. Froome became isolated for a rare occasion during this year’s Tour when Wout Poels and Geraint Thomas were both distanced on the ascent of the Col d’Allos, giving Quintana confidence in the stages to come.

“Today I was almost 100 per cent. We have not got to Froome but we have weakened Sky and now come the more serious stages, which favour me, with longer climbs and tougher finishes where we can try to scratch back some time,” Quintana told the press after the stage. “Tomorrow’s stage will be very complicated and the finish in La Toussuire is a course that suits me, it is all day up and down, with major climbs that are very hard and very long. Alpe d’Huez is a fairly long climb and the slope suits my abilities. There is terrain to bring the battle.”