Tour Down Under 2016 route

As ever, the course has been tinkered with slightly from last year’s race, which saw Dennis claim the race lead on the hill-top finish at Paracombe and hold on to his advantage despite Porte’s stage win on Willunga Hill.

Willunga Hill will again be the focal point of the race, with a double ascent of the three kilometre climb (average gradient 7.6 per cent) awaiting on the penultimate day.

Porte has actually been victorious on the climb, in the colours of Team Sky, in the last two editions but on both occasions could not eke out a large enough winning margin to move top of the GC.

With Paracombe not featuring this year, however, that may change – the winner on Willunga Hill may well be crowned champion.

There are still plenty of other chances to seize control of the race, though, in particular stage three, which finishes with the climb of Montacute and a rapid descent into Campbelltown. Cadel Evans was victorious there after a late attack in 2014.

Stage one should favour the sprinters, while stage two’s uphill finish into Stirling is one for punchy riders – Michael Matthews, Diego Ulissi, Tom-Jelte Slagter and Juan-Jose Lobato count themselves among the former winners there, which is an indicator of the type of rider it suits.

Stage four, from Norwood to Victor Harbor, is also likely to end with a bunch sprint – unless someone can get away over the Port Elliot climb with about 20km to go.

That sets things up for a decisive stage over Willunga Hill before the circuitous finale in Adelaide wraps things up on Sunday January 17.

Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing)

Defending champion Rohan Dennis will roll out wearing dossard number one with the man he beat to victory last year, Richie Porte, now among his team-mates.

Dennis, 25, has already tasted success in his home country this season after storming to the Australian national time trial title and will be keen for more success to kick off 2016.

He may also yet again benefit from BMC Racing’s two-pronged attack – last year, the GC men were marking team-mate Cadel Evans as Dennis made what proved to be a race-winning move on Paracombe.

However, Porte ultimately is the man to beat on Willunga Hill and Dennis – despite being defending champion – may find his role changes to that of supporting his new team-mate.

Until then, Dennis is a contender in his own right, as he not only proved at last year’s Tour Down Under but also at the USA Pro Challenge in August where he grabbed overall victory.

Richie Porte (BMC Racing)

Should Dennis not manage to defend the title he won last year, you can guarantee team-mate Porte will not be far away from the top step of the podium.

Twice a stage winner on Willunga Hill, the former Team Sky man has a huge opportunity to kick off his BMC Racing career with overall victory in his home country.

As he has found in the last two editions, however, victory on the penultimate stage is not a guarantee of overall success.

– Richie Porte exclusive interview: I leave Team Sky without a bad word to say about them –

Much will depend on how both he, and his chief rivals, do on earlier stages where bonus seconds and small splits in the bunch can make a big difference.

BMC Racing boast a strong squad for this race, with Alessandro de Marchi also among their numbers, but it is their two Australian stars in Dennis and Porte who will be fighting at the sharp end of the season opener.

Jack Bobridge (Trek-Segafredo)

Given the fine margins the Tour Down Under is so often won by, it is not improbable the winner could be simply an opportunist, who takes a chance at the right moment.

And as opportunists go, newly-crowned Australian national champion Jack Bobridge is certainly a man who falls in that category.

Having soloed to victory in the Australian national road race, Bobridge will hope for success when racing in the gold and green bands on home soil.

Back in the WorldTour after being signed by Trek-Segafredo in the winter, Bobridge is one of four new faces in the team’s line-up, alongside Peter Stetina, Kiel Reijnen and Ryder Hesjedal.

All will be looking for – and on their day are capable of – making a big early impression, but it’s Bobridge who has previous in this race.

Last year, the Australian bolted clear of the peloton on the first stage and stayed clear – winning the stage and bagging the first ochre jersey.

His challenge ended in Paracombe, but his focus back then was form for his ultimately unsuccessful UCI Hour Record attempt.

Bobridge has no such distractions this time out – but he will be a marked man, even if he doesn’t concede time to the other contenders on the hillier stages.

Diego Ulissi (Lampre-Merida)

Another man with previous in this race is Diego Ulissi, who returns to the race he finished third at in 2014.

The Lampre-Merida man made a strong return to the peloton after his nine-month doping suspension for acting negligently when taking too much of the asthma drug Salbutamol.

Cleared of deliberate wrongdoing, the Italian immediately set about making up for lost time with a Giro d’Italia stage win and top-ten finishes at the Tours of Slovenia, Poland and Abu Dhabi.

Ulissi proved his versatility with a stage win into Stirling at the 2014 Tour Down Under, and the punchy uphill finishes that often feature in this race certainly suit him.

His overall hopes will depend on how he does on the tougher stages, but Ulissi is certainly capable.

Von Hoff, alongside fellow Aussie Matt Goss, will be among the sprinters looking to put the British UCI ProContinental team on their map in their first season in pro cycling’s second tier.

Among the other riders debuting for new teams is Marko Kump at Lampre-Merida. The Slovenian sprinter, 27, returns to the WorldTour after amassing 18 victories for Continental Team Adria Mobil in 2015 and will be keen to prove he can make the step up.