Geraint Thomas saw the 2027 Tour de France route reveal and had one major takeaway - with the Montmartre circuit returning once again for the Grand Tour's big finale, the organisers should not neutralise general classification times during the stage.

The cobbled climb arrived at the Tour last summer, and has been used on stage 21 two years in a row, providing a high-stakes opportunity for attackers to try and deny the sprinters on what has traditionally been a Champs Elysees finish for the fast men.

Wout van Aert went solo to the line in 2025 before Mathieu van der Poel left everything on the road to hold off the sprinters by mere millimetres in a nail-biting finale that has left a positive impact on fans of the Tour.

With Montmartre back once again for 2026, Geraint Thomas and Laurens de Plus reacted to the route reveal on the Watts Occurring Podcast, where the two noted an unusual stage 20 that appears to be a sprint stage.

Mathieu van der Poel beat Tadej Pogacar and the sprinters in Paris

Thomas doesn't want GC neutralisation in Paris

This mean's that the usual final week mountains battle will conclude on stage 19, with De Plus suggesting that the winner will already be known some way before the bunch rolls into Paris: "I haven't seen a Grand Tour with stage 20, like, a sprint day."

However, INEOS Director of Racing Thomas believes that the GC battle doesn't have to be over on stage 19, pointing to the neutralisation of general classification times either before or during the Montmartre circuit.

The former Tour winner questioned the logic behind the move, dismissing safety as a concern given the amount of hazards the bunch race through over a three-week journey around France. Thomas sees no reason for times to be taken before the finish line if the showpiece finale is added.

“Well, not unless they leave the GC open, which I think they should. Explain this to me, right? You race over cobbles, you do crazy stuff all through the race. They never stop the time yet,” Thomas said.

"What about the other 20 days?"

“Why do you need to stop the time with three laps to go? Just because it's Paris? Safety, mate. Like, what about the other 20 days? If you're gonna put that stage on, leave the GC on. It's no different to any other stage, in my mind.”

Assessing the route itself, Thomas believes that Tadej Pogacar can't be overlooked as the favourite to win an historic sixth Tour. Furthermore, he sees huge potential for Remco Evenepoel to grab hold of the yellow jersey and carry it into the first big reckoning with the high mountains on stage nine.

He added: “I still think Pog's still the out-and-out favourite... I think it's great for Remco. He can take the jersey on stage seven, and then he can, you know, go into that first big test on stage nine in yellow."