If nothing else, the 100th edition of the Tour de France has proved timing is everything.
In stage two in Corsica, Jan Bakelants (RadioShack-Leopard) timed a solo attack to perfection to take the yellow jersey by just one second.
Fast-forward to the summit finish on Ax 3 Domaines, and Chris Froome (Sky) launched a blistering attack to grab the yellow jersey and put a lot of time into his main rivals.
Froome proved it again on Mont Ventoux while, on the other hand, Saxo-Tinkoff duo Alberto Contador and Roman Kreuziger’s attack on the descent of Col de Sarenne in stage 18 was doomed to failure – and saw them lose time in the GC.
One man above all has proved he is the master of timing attacks to perfection however – Movistar’s Rui Costa soloed to victory in Gap on Tuesday and three days later did it again, striking at the perfect time to race to victory in Le Grand-Bornand.
See how the Portuguese star did it in this stunning gallery of photos by UCI WorldTour photographer Stefano Sirotti.
