'I'm sure the big boys will come out to play' – GC contenders expected to clash on punchy Tour de France stage 4 finish in Rouen

Stage 4 of the Tour de France and the rollercoaster roads to Rouen should inspire A GC battle, offering the likes of Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) a chance to attack.

The 174.2km stage from Amiens takes the Tour into Normandy, with four categorised climbs in the final 30km and a rise to the finish line.

In a similar finish to stage 2 in Boulogne-sur-Mer, which saw Pogačar and close rival Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) come to the fore, only losing out to Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Tuesday's stage will surely bring the superstars into play, but on an even harder finale.

This 2025 Tour de France has seen all the drama of a typical Grand Tour. Seeing the big name GC contenders racing hard for every second must be delighting race organisers ASO after they designed a testing fit week and included the tough route into Rouen from Amiens.

Ineos Grenadiers are trying to join the action and are expected major battle and a hard day in the saddle on Tuesday.

They will fight for the stage win with Axel Laurance and Sam Watson, with Carlos Rodríguez and Geraint Thomas hoping not to lose any more time on GC, as they did on Sunday's explosive finish.

"I went and saw stage 4 between Flanders and Roubaix, and it is super, super hard," Ineos directeur sportif Zak Dempster told Cyclingnews.

"In the first 100km, you're gonna have crosswinds and big rolling roads. That's going to be one challenge. Then you come into the final and it's more or less like a little mini Liège-Bastogne-Liège, or Flèche Wallonne.

"I think it's a lot harder than stage 2, and you saw on Sunday how it split up pretty significantly."

After losing sprinter and friend Jasper Philipsen to a nasty crash and broken collarbone amid the chaos of stage 3, Mathieu van der Poel talked about little else post-stage, with the sadness of the crash hitting Alpecin-Deceuninck hard.

"We just need a good night's sleep, but for now, everybody is just sad to lose Jasper," said Van der Poel in his race leader's press conference, preferring not to focus on stage 4 just yet.

"There's no other choice of course but to reset. It's just really shit to lose him, not only on the bike, but also next to the bike at the table."

Van der Poel is still one of the favourites for stage 4, especially after winning in Boulogne-sur-Mer and taking the yellow jersey for the first time in four years.

However Dempster thinks it could prove just too difficult for the Dutchman, with the GC favourites primed for action.

"I think it's more of a GC day, maybe it's right on the cusp of what Van der Poel is capable of," said Dempster.

"But I think if you get it right, then there's time to be gained for sure. So let's see what the big boys do, but I'm sure they'll come out to play."

Vingegaard has so far tried to beat Pogačar at his own attacking game at this year's Tour, attacking the crosswinds on stage 1 into Lille and then again chancing his hand on a descent on stage 2, so don't just expect a one-man show if the two yellow jersey favourites do enter into the discussion.

Visma-Lease a Bike are hoping for Wout van Aert to play out the final into Rouen, especially after missing out on the superstar sprint on stage.

“In the finale, we drifted a bit towards the back with the team," said van Aert on the team's website after they escaped stage 3 unscathed, committing to a fight for victory on Tuesday.

"Overall, I was able to recover well today. Hopefully I’ll feel a bit better tomorrow, so that I can fight for the stage win.”

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