Pineau believes in polkadots

By Brecht Decaluwé in Dax

With the real mountains coming up, the red-dotted jersey might slip out of the hands of Bouygues Telecom's Jérôme Pineau. The French rider didn't agree with that. "Tomorrow, I hope that I can show that I can also take points on mountains other than those in Normandy. The ‘cols' are not really my cup of tea, but I'll go flat out to defend the jersey."

Pineau is a big believer of 'cycling at two speeds' - the French explanation for some rider's good results due to alleged doping practices. "I think we can expect surprises with some GC riders," he added.