Last month, Geraint Thomas hinted at the idea of switching to the Giro d'Italia in 2023, and that plan has now crystallised after the route for the next Tour de France was unveiled last weekend.
In contrast to the Giro's whopping 70km of time trialling, the Tour has all but done away with racing the clock, including just a 22km time trial that takes place in the Alps.
The pure climbers of the peloton have welcomed the parcours, but Thomas, winner of the 2018 Tour and third this year, is among the overall contenders who make inroads against the clock. As such, he has reacted with disappointment, and also a little confusion.
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"I'm not too sure why they've done that," Thomas told Cyclingnews in Saitama.
"When I did my first Tour in 2007 – OK, it was a long time ago – it had two TTs of 50km plus, so it's quite extreme to go the other way like that.
"Those TT days are big iconic stages as well. This year there were only three big bunch sprints, which are iconic stages as well. Maybe they're just trying to mix it up completely. I think it's disappointing there's not more [time trialling]."
The Tour, then, is not the most attractive proposition for Thomas next year but the route wasn't exactly a deal-breaker. He argues that nowadays his biggest rivals can all time trial as well as him, and the parcours has only served to strengthen his existing conviction that the Giro is the path to follow in 2023.
"That's what I was thinking anyway. The Giro is a lot less intense - just the atmosphere and everything. I'd like to ride it another time."
Having now occupied every step of the Tour podium, there's a feeling that the 36-year-old has ticked all boxes in France, whereas over in Italy there's unfinished business.
Thomas has ridden the corsa rosa four times, twice in the early years of his career and twice since his emergence as a stage racer, with a pair of freak early crashes taking him out in 2017 and 2020.
"It's a race I've always enjoyed, even if I've crashed out the last two times I've done it. It would be nice to go back and finish it," Thomas said.
"There is a bit of ['what might have been']. In 2020 I felt in really good shape. Even one before that with the motorbike parked on the road... I really would have loved to have seen how I'd have done."
Thomas stopped short of outlining a GC bid for next year's Giro. He only worked his way into a leadership role for this year's Tour at the last minute, and it appears he'll look to fly under the radar once again next year.
"How I treat it would just be to get to the Giro as best I can. Whether that ends up being going for stages or riding GC, that's a different matter. But I'd really like to do the Giro.
"It'll be similar to the Tour this year – just get there in the best shape and go from there."
