Here’s another in the excellent series of preview videos from Team IG-Sigma Sport’s Daniel Lloyd.

The riders will set off today on a 180.7km stage from Nottingham to Knowsley Safari Park, the first testing stage of the race.

Lloyd warns that the three first category climbs, the first of which appears after just 26.2km, will make the stage “particularly tough”.

Gradients will have a dramatic effect on speed, he adds, with riders sprinting for points in the King of the Mountains classification likely to reach speeds of 40kmh on today’s five per cent gradients.

Later in the race, however, when gradients are expected to increase to around 15 per cent, speeds could drop to less than 20kph.

The riders are expected in Knowsley at about 2.20pm today. If the bunch is together after such testing climbs, the sprinters will be eager to have their say after yesterday’s collision-strewn climax to stage one.

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