Route

A varied route could produce a typically open Tour of Britain for the modern race’s 13^th edition, with summit finishes, big climbs, long stages and a split time trial and circuit race stage in Bristol all to contend with.

The peloton start north of the border in Scotland, and will race from Glasgow to Dumfries’ Castle Douglas on stage one, while stage two could see splits open up very early on with Whinlatter Pass and The Struggle offering platforms for attacks in the Lake District.

Another big climb – the 10km Cat and Fiddle – features on stage three, and what it lacks in gradient it makes up for with heavy roads as the peloton races from Congleton to Tatton Park.

Stage four heads south through Wales from Denbigh to Builth Wells, which at 217km is the longest of the race.

Contenders

Alex Dowsett (Movistar)

After an injury-hit campaign cost him a place at the Giro d’Italia, where he was fancied to win the stage nine individual time trial, Alex Dowsett has targeted the Tour of Britain.

The Movistar man wore the leader’s jersey in 2014, but paid for his efforts in claiming the race lead when he lost it again the following day.

This time, however, with just one hilltop finish and the 15km individual time trial to follow, the British time trial champion believes he can make up any time lost on Haytor when he races against the clock.

Dowsett faces stiff competition, not just for the overall win but for the time trial stage, but after sitting in a hospital bed with ‘Grand Tour form in my legs’ ahead of the Giro, the Essex man has some scores to settle.

Tony Martin/Daniel Martin (Etixx-QuickStep)

Etixx-QuickStep have a strong line-up for the Tour of Britain, with plenty of options for the overall win within their six-strong team.

Dan Martin was in top form at the Tour de France, claiming ninth place overall, and certainly has the credentials to win on Britain’s heavy roads.

But he lost nearly a minute to race leader Bradley Wiggins on the Haytor summit finish in 2013 and will need to avoid a repeat performance this time out.

Namesake Tony, meanwhile, can press home his advantage in the time trial and is also not a man the peloton will want setting the pace in a break.

Etixx-QuickStep’s options aren’t limited to the Martins either, with stagiaire Adrien Costa – the latest big talent blossoming with Axel Merckx’s Axeon team in America – racing on the back of third place at the Tour de l’Avenir and second overall at the Tour of Utah.

Wout Poels (Team Sky)

While defending champion Edvald Boasson Hagen will not be taking part, last year’s second-place finisher and stage winner Wout Poels will.

Team Sky won four stages at last year’s race, with Elia Viviani netting a hat-trick of sprint victories alongside Poels’ win and the Dutchman finished just 13 seconds off top spot overall.

He struggled for form in the Olympic road race in Rio, paying for his efforts supporting Chris Froome to victory in the Tour de France but the 28-year-old has had nearly a month since then to recharge.

Team-mate Nicolas Roche – Irish road and time trial champion – could be another rider to watch, before he leaves Sky for BMC Racing, and you can guarantee Team Sky will be keen to have a say of some sort in their ‘home’ race.

Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing)

Rohan Dennis can time trial, but there is more one string to his bow and he has his fair share of stage racing success to his name.

An ill-time mechanical proved fatal for his hopes of winning an Olympic medal at Rio 2016, having set the early pace on the course, and the Tour of Britain will be the Australian’s first race since.

A winner of the Santos Tour Down Under and USA Pro Challenge in 2015, before finishing second at this year’s Amgen Tour of California, the 26-year-old is capable of big things.

Like most of the time trial specialists, Dennis will be keen not to cede any time on Haytor – but he managed exactly that on Willunga Hill at last year’s Tour Down Under; in fact, he finished second to reiterate the fact he’s more than a time triallist.

Tao Geoghegan Hart (Great Britain)

The Tour of Britain catapulted Simon Yates into the national consciousness three years ago, and Tao Geoghegan Hart is capable of earning the national team more success on Haytor this time out.

The Team Sky-bound 21-year-old was 15^th in 2014 and 21^st last time out, but he will lead the British national team for the third consecutive year on the back of a sixth place finish at the Tour de l’Avenir.

Geoghegan Hart has seen Axeon team-mate Adrien Costa steal his limelight somewhat this season, but a string of impressive GC results have added to the Londoner’s rising stock once again.

He is unlikely to have such a free role at Team Sky, at least in his first couple of years, so this is a big opportunity to prove his worth before the next big step in his career.

Soon-to-be Team Sky team-mate Owain Doull flew the flag for young British riders when he finished third last year but with Team Wiggins rider Doull racing on the back of his Rio 2016 exploits, this could be Geoghegan Hart’s turn instead.

Other riders to watch

Alongside the GC men and time trial specialists, a host of leading sprinters have also been tempted out to play – led by 30-time Tour de France stage winner Mark Cavendish.

The Brit will resume hostilities with Lotto-Soudal’s Andre Greipel, and it will be interesting to see if he can recapture his form post-Rio with the World Championships on the horizon.

The man who beat him to omnium gold in Rio, Italian Team Sky man Elia Viviani, is also among the sprinting contenders having won three times in last year’s race.

Sky have enlisted Britain’s Ben Swift and the Netherlands’ Danny van Poppel to form a strong sprinting arsenal for the race.

British interests in the bunch gallops are not limited to Cavendish or Swift either – British champion Adam Blythe will race for the national team alongside Dan McLay, who impressed on his Tour de France debut.

Fellow young sprinters Caleb Ewan (Orica-BikeExchange) and Dylan Groenewegen (LottoNL-Jumbo) will also be involved, so it’s a chance to see how three of the peloton’s brightest sprinting talents match up.