Chris Froome's Tour de France dominance 'has to be discouraging for the other guys'
With Team Sky possessing one of the strongest squads at the Tour de France, Chris Froome admits it must be demoralising for his rivals to see their strength in depth

Chris Froome on stage 16 of the 2016 Tour de France (Watson)

Team Sky's Tour de France dominance with yellow jersey Chris Froome "has to be discouraging" for rivals with four mountain stages to race after Tuesday's rest in Bern, Switzerland.
Froome leads with 1-47 minutes over Dutchman Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo) and 2-45 over Brit Adam Yates (Orica-BikeExchange) with some of the hardest days to come. So far, though, Sky showed no weakness and in fact, had numbers for the summit finishes to Arcalís and Mont Ventoux.
Froome, speaking at the team's rest day press conference, admitted that his team's depth must discourage the others.
"I have strong team around me. It has to be discouraging for the other guys [to see] the guys riding around me and setting the tempo," he said. "We are not going to get complacent because we have tough stages to come."
Sky began the Tour with a climber heavy team in case one rider fell sick or crashed. Froome could draw on Geraint Thomas, Wout Poels, Mikel Nieve, Sergio Henao or Mikel Landa if the situation became tough.
“In the past, we’ve never had five guys who can stay there in the end on their day,” Thomas explained. “Frosty [Nieve] won the climber’s jersey at the Giro, Landa is a class rider, Wout, myself, and Henao, it’s just unbelievable, really.
“Like the other day, when I had a mechanical and lost the group, we still had two guys there. That’s why we brought so many climbers. We can still have two guys with Froome in a group of 15.”
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
A look ahead to the final week of the Tour de France
So far, it has not been that bad.
"The race has been that hard. People say that guys didn't attack two stages ago [over the Grand Colombier to Culoz], but Aru attacked, Valverde attacked and Bardet attacked, the only guy who didn't was Nairo Quintana. That's who everyone was waiting for, but other people tried," Froome explained.
"One of the reasons we haven't seen those massive attacks is because the level of fatigue is up there, these stages have been full-gas, and it's been tough on our side as well. We still have nine riders, everyone is healthy and we haven't got any big injuries."
Unless the Colombian climber Quintana finds an extra gear, it is hard to imagine Froome cracking and not riding into Paris for his third Tour title. Quintana sits fourth overall at 2-59.
"Nairo? It's difficult to say, but last year he made up a lot of time in the last week. I expect he'll be one of the main guys to put us under pressure," Froome added.
"Coming into the last week, I'm more ready than I have been previously. Starting the racing later helped, a quieter run into the Tour helped that. I am on track to be at my best for the third week.
"I wouldn't say the best is yet to come, but I wouldn't say I am just hanging on like in the last Tours. I feel that I'm more ready for this third week than I have been in the last editions."
Followers should not expect much from Froome. He said that with his advantage, he would not attack just for the sake of attacking.
"These next for days are so hard, any energy we spend now will take away from what we have to spend over these next four days. I feel as if I have even waiting for these next four days, and the other riders have, too."
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Gregor Brown is an experienced cycling journalist, based in Florence, Italy. He has covered races all over the world for over a decade - following the Giro, Tour de France, and every major race since 2006. His love of cycling began with freestyle and BMX, before the 1998 Tour de France led him to a deep appreciation of the road racing season.
-
Not a typo! These Oura Gen 3 Smart Rings have up to $100 off – Get a deep dive on your health and well being with these Amazon deals
Deals The Oura Smart Rings one of the best way's to track biometrics with a focus on recovery and wellness
By Paul Brett Published
-
How to watch Gent-Wevelgem 2025: Everything you need to live stream the Flemish Classic
All the information on broadcasters and live streams for Gent-Wevelgem on 30 March, as the Spring Classics continue in Flanders.
By Adam Becket Published
-
'An unprecedented opportunity for brands to be part of the evolution' - Ineos Grenadiers sponsor hunt steps up with sales agency partnership
Sportfive have been employed to find "non-endemic global partners for the team"
By Adam Becket Published
-
'We've all got a little bit extra in us this year' - Ineos Grenadiers recapture 'fighting spirit' with aggressive Paris-Nice display
British team continue to put tumultuous 2024 behind them with momentum and a new found mentality
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Could a TotalEnergies deal be the end of Ineos Grenadiers as we know them?
Reports suggested this week that Ineos could be close to signing a deal with the French petrochemical firm
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
'They’re racing with their hearts again' - Robbie McEwen on Ineos Grenadiers' bright start to 2025
The British squad have already won four times in 2025
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Ineos Grenadiers are entertaining so far this year, but how long will it last?
The British WorldTour squad have won four times already in 2025, but more than that, they have been fun. Is this the new dawn?
By Adam Becket Published
-
Caleb Ewan says he was put in a 'bad situation' by Jayco AlUla before he joined Ineos Grenadiers
Ewan joined Ineos Grenadiers in January after spending just one year with Jayco AlUla
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
'There's no bull****, that's what I've always liked' - Geraint Thomas's first BC coach Rod Ellingworth on the retiring Welshman
The 2018 Tour de France winner will step away from professional cycling at the end of the season
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
'It is time to change goals' - Egan Bernal's coach confirms Ineos Grenadiers exit
'I want to thank all the cyclists I have had the opportunity to coach over the past ten years' Xabier Artetxe says in LinkedIn post
By Tom Thewlis Published