Alongside Thibaut Pinot, the cycling-mad French public are expecting big things from Romain Bardet – and he is slowly but surely starting to deliver on them.

A solid start to the season so far rose to a crescendo at the Criterium du Dauphine, showing the 24-year-old is coming into form at the right time, and his stage win was a big statement.

A perfectly-timed attack and fearless descent saw him solo to victory in Pra-Loup, and with the stage being repeated at the Tour he will be a man to look out for.

Simon Yates’ strong finish to the race saw Bardet denied the white jersey, but he boasts Tour de France experience, while Yates’ debuted last year and raced just the first two weeks.

Bardet finished 15^th overall in 2013 and improved to sixth last year – second in the youth classification and the former Tour de l’Ain winner certainly boasts a big future.

Bettering Quintana this year will be a big ask, but he showed he is not afraid of attacking the best riders at the Dauphine.

At the very least he will be disappointed if he is not in the top ten overall, and anybody in the top ten, if the right people have missed out above you, stands a chance of at least spending a few days in the white jersey.

Age: 24
Best Tour de France result: sixth (2014), second best young rider (2014)
2015 highlights: Ruta del Sol (fifth overall); Giro del Trentino (ninth overall); Tour de Romandie (ninth overall); Criterium du Dauphine (stage win, sixth overall)