With the Critérium du Dauphiné in the books and the Tour de Suisse underway, another Tour de France preparation race kicks off on Wednesday as several top sprinters take on the Baloise Belgium Tour.
Nine-time Tour stage winner Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and fellow Belgian sprinting star Tim Merlier (Soudal-QuickStep) headline the sprinting lineup at the five-day race as they look to put the finishing touches on their preparation for the biggest race of the year in July.
The pair will both be eyeing the opening day of the Tour, a flat 185km stage in Lille, as a chance to grab the first victory of the race and with it a rare shot at a yellow jersey for a sprinter.
Before that, they'll face off against the likes of Casper Van Uden (Picnic-PostNL), Juan Sebastián Molano (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), Fernando Gaviria (Movistar), and Alberto Dainese (Tudor) in Belgium.
Speaking to WielerFlits ahead of Wednesday's opening stage, 2023 Tour green jersey winner Philipsen said he'll be aiming for the maillot jaune in Lille.
"It is, of course, a great opportunity for the first yellow jersey. That is what we are going for, but the Tour lasts three weeks and I hope to be there from start to finish," Philipsen said.
He'll once again be able to rely on teammate Mathieu van der Poel in the Alpecin-Deceuninck lead-out train this July and said that the Dutchman looks to be in flying form following his impressive showing at the Critérium du Dauphiné.
"What he showed in the Critérium du Dauphiné is promising," he said. "His condition looks very good. I have not often seen him in such a condition for the Tour."
Merlier, meanwhile, will return to the Tour for the first time since 2021, when he won stage 3. Back then, he raced alongside Philipsen on the same team but was forced to abandon on stage 9 after dropping from the gruppetto in the Alps.
This year, he'll form part of Remco Evenepoel's team as the Belgian seeks to battle for the yellow jersey, meaning he'll have fewer riders dedicated to the lead-out train than Philipsen.
He said, however, that he expects Soudal-QuickStep to go all-in for the win on stage 1.
"The collaboration with Bert Van Lerberghe is something that works very well between us," he said of his lead-out man. "But I expect the rest of the team to be there for us in the final.
"It will be a special Tour. The opening stage will be very important. The last time the first stage was for sprinters was a while ago. So, that will probably not be the case again in the future."
First of all, though, the pair will be doing battle in Belgium, with the opening two stages looking primed to host a mass sprint finish ahead of the stage 3 time trial and hillier tests during the closing two stages.
"In principle, I don't need an extra victory for my confidence for the Tour de France, but I would like it. I give the best of myself in every race," Merlier said, while Philipsen said that a win would be a "motivational boost" in a race which gives him a chance to gauge himself against his rivals.
"A stage win is always the goal here and a motivational boost for what is to come. It is always an important race with a view to what is yet to come," he said.
"It's a nice race to see where you are and what your condition is with a view to the Tour. It's always good for your confidence if you can win here and get a good feeling."
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