Chris Froome backs Richie Porte for Tour de France podium position
Richie Porte can still make it to the final podium of the 2016 Tour de France, says former Sky team-mate Chris Froome
Sky's Chris Froome backs his former team-mate Richie Porte to finish on the Tour de France podium in Paris on Sunday after two impressive days in the Alps, including fourth best in Thursday's time trial to Megève.
Porte, now with BMC Racing, put time on most of his rivals for the podium spot behind Froome in the 17-kilometre mountain time trial. He slipped to five minutes behind Froome, but moved within 1-08 minutes of Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo) in second and 44 seconds of Adam Yates (Orica-BikeExchange) in third.
"Richie Porte did a good time trial today, strong, and yesterday he was the only one to make the race," Froome said after putting on a new yellow jersey.
>>> Five talking points from stage 18 of the Tour de France
"He looks like the one with the most to gain over the next couple of stages. Obviously, he had some bad luck in the early stage [with a puncture], it's a shame, but if he continues in this way, he'll see himself on the podium in Paris."
Porte lost 1-45 minutes due to a puncture in the second stage of the Tour, but improved since. Yesterday to the Finhaut-Emosson summit finish, he was the only one of the stars to make a significant attack.
Today, the 31-year-old Australian clocked 31-16 minutes, just a fraction of a second slower than Fabio Aru (Astana) on the same time. Froome won the stage ahead of Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Alpecin).
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
"Today was a good performance, it's just hard to think about the second stage and the time I threw away there," Porte said behind the podium.
"I had a good time trial. I showed that I'm climbing well. We did the recon on it, I knew it was a hard stage and it suited me.
"I took some more time out of some of the other GC guys. The next two days will be a big battle. I'm looking forward to taking my chance and fighting for the podium."
The next two days in the Alps are the final two testing days in the 2016 Tour before the flat stage into Paris. The 19th stage on Friday finishes with a climb up to Le Bettex below Mont Blanc. On Saturday, the stage covers the Joux Plane and descends to Morzine.
The Tour should see a good fight with only 1-08 minutes between second and sixth place.
"The podium is just so tight, other teams can't let other GC guys go either. I need to look at later tonight with the sports directors to see where we can peg some time back," added Porte.
"I'm confident for the next two days and the big mountains, hopefully I'll have space to take more time out of the big GC guys.
"I just want to have the days [to do it]. It's no secret I want that podium and I'm prepared to fight."
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.
-
'Our costs are going up but customers can’t pay more': Community bike shops are making cycling affordable, but can they afford to keep the doors open?
Not-for-profit setups designed to make cycling accessible are feeling the pinch - but the communities they're designed to serve can keep them alive
By Isobel Duxfield Published
-
Small Cost, BIG Features | Is This Indoor Training Platform Worth The Switch?
icTrainer costs 9x less than the market leader but this indoor training platform is still jam packed with features
By Sponsored Published
-
Chris Froome misses out on Tour de France selection
39-year-old absent from Israel-Premier Tech's eight-rider roster
By Tom Davidson Published
-
A complete history of Ineos Grenadiers kits, from Adidas to Gobik, via Rapha
The British team switch to Gobik in 2024 after two years with Bioracer
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Chris Froome's boss rubbishes claims bike fit is behind lack of results
'He can talk about his bike position until the cows come home - that's still not going to earn him a position on a Grand Tour team' says Israel-Premier Tech team owner Sylvan Adams
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Chris Froome, rim brake evangelist, 'warms to' disc brakes
The Israel-Premier Tech rider, also an investor at Factor Bikes, says that he has "way less problems" with discs these days
By Adam Becket Published
-
Is Chris Froome - in 2023 - a professional cyclist, or an influencer?
The seven-time Grand Tour winner hasn't raced since July, but has taken to being interesting on social media
By Adam Becket Published
-
Chris Froome 'absolutely not' worth multi-million euro salary says his team boss
The four-time Tour de France winner was not selected for this year's Tour de France for performance reasons, Israel-Premier Tech boss Sylvan Adams says
By Chris Marshall-Bell Published
-
Chris Froome not selected for Tour de France 2023
38-year-old misses out on 'ultimate goal' as Israel-Premier Tech confirm eight-man squad
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Back to Africa: Chris Froome on going back to his roots, his future and cycling's new generation
He’s come full circle, but is there time for another loop? We talk to the four-time Tour champ about his and African cycling’s future
By Adam Becket Published