Thursday is another day for the sprinters! After twelve days of racing, it will already be the fifth opportunity for a bunch sprint in the Tour de France. Between the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours and Chalon-sur-Saône, there are hardly any elevation changes.

Formula 1 fans may remember Circuit de Nevers as a former Grand Prix venue. Until 2008, the Formula 1 championship was held here annually, with legendary drivers like Michael Schumacher winning on its track.

From the circuit, the riders head east on Thursday. As in previous stages, they cross the Loire before eventually reaching the Morvan Nature Park.

Here awaits the only obstacle of the day: the Côte de Montagny-lès-Buxy, a climb of just 2.6 kilometers with an average gradient of 3.9 percent. Will climbers really be dropped here? We can hardly imagine it. Therefore, the peloton will spend the final twenty kilometers preparing for a mass sprint.