Vincenzo Nibali doesn’t go to the Dauphine with any intention to win the race. He rolls up, finds his climbing legs, assesses his rivals and then tears up the form book at the Tour de France.

When Nibali was dropped on stage five to Pra Loup he looked short on form, but was he just keeping his cards close to his chest on what is essential a Tour warm-up race, with bigger things to come in July?

Nibali showed his true colours the following day with an insatiable display of attacking – and the way he drove the pace in the breakaway, showing both strength and tactical awareness, accelerating out of corners to ensure his companions didn’t get a free ride behind him, was a timely reminder of the Italian national champion’s strength.

It wasn’t a flawless display – Nibali over-cooked things as far as the stage win was concerned, losing out to Rui Costa (Lampre-Merida) – but it was a sign he is approaching top shape ahead of his Tour de France title defence.

While Team Sky’s pace-setting was too hot for Nibali to handle on the final weekend, limiting his day in yellow to one stage and forcing him to settle for 12th overall, don’t be fooled into thinking Chris Froome has the edge just yet. Nibali showed to devastating effect on stage six just what he can do and he proved last year that he’s a master at peaking for the Tour de France.