Analysing Ineos Grenadiers’ Tour de France 10-rider long list

The Tour de France is less than a month away and with teams forming their squads and the final selections set to be made following the Tour de Suisse, anticipation is high as the days tick down to the Grand Départ.

Ineos Grenadiers have several spots already designated to key riders with Tom Pidcock, Egan Bernal, Carlos Rodríguez and Geraint Thomas set to form the team’s core. While the official long list hasn’t been announced, confirmed or shared with the media, GCN understands that there are ten names currently in contention and in this analysis, we’ve run through the riders Ineos are potentially preparing for stage 1 in Florence, Italy.

Tom Pidcock

Team role: Leader

Tour de France pedigree: Two top-twenty GC places and one stage win

Analysis: There’s little doubt that Pidcock will make the Tour de France team - he’s been pencilled in since the end of last year - and his pedigree ensures that he will be one of the most exciting riders to watch this summer. Part of that excitement, however, centres around the fact that we don’t quite know what role the British rider will play during his three-week jaunt across Italy and France. There’s no doubt that Pidcock has the talent to target the top ten overall, and he could even vie for a top five in Nice. However, several factors could get in the way of a purely GC-focused path. First, the presence of Carlos Rodríguez in the team, who was a top-fiver last year and won a stage.

Read more: 'Cut the cameras' - Tour de France: Unchained series 2 exposes discord within Ineos Grenadiers

Can Ineos support two GC prospects without being forced to choose between them? It worked at the Giro d’Italia this year to some extent but the Tour is a far more competitive beast and choices will need to be made. Secondly, the Olympics are on the horizon and they’re such a focal point for Pidcock that it will be almost impossible to avoid any form of off-road distraction during the month of July. The media certainly won’t let the 24-year-old forget. Finally, this is Pidcock’s first bonafide assault on GC in a Grand Tour. There’s no blueprint for this within the rider’s palmarès, so once again, and for all these reasons, he’s one of the most intriguing and exciting riders to follow in this year’s race.

Read more: Tom Pidcock to race mountain bike World Cup just six days before Tour de France

Carlos Rodríguez

Team role: Leader

Tour de France pedigree: Fifth overall and one stage win at last year’s race

Analysis: The 23-year-old had a middling start to the season but has found his groove since April, finishing second in the Basque Country and then winning the Tour de Romandie to seal his first GC victory at WorldTour level. Currently competing at the Critérium du Dauphiné, the Spanish climber is in a strong position with the Tour de France less than a month away. Rodríguez's form last year, and career trajectory, suggest that if one or two of the Tour de France big four stumble then he should be next in line to capitalise. The route is well suited to his skillset, and unlike Pidcock, he has a short but valuable back-catalogue of Grand Tour leadership experience to fall back on.

Geraint Thomas

Team role: Super domestique, stage hunter

Tour de France pedigree: Great Britain’s best-ever Tour de France rider behind Chris Froome, with one win and two additional podium spots

Analysis: With the Giro d’Italia in the rearview mirror, Thomas heads to the Tour de France with a super domestique-cum-stage hunting role on the cards. It’s a role he last played during Chris Froome’s heyday and since then, Thomas has won the Tour and finished on the podium twice. While the years have racked up, few would argue with the veteran’s durability and experience. Third in the Giro in May also proved that despite his age, the 38-year-old remains a competitive force. The focus for the Tour de France, however, will revolve around supporting Pidcock and Rodríguez, while Thomas will also aim at stage hunting through the mountains in the second and third weeks.

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Geraint Thomas can fill the gap of Luke Rowe as Ineos' road captain

Thomas might also slip into the road captain role, similar to how Michael Rogers did back during the Team Sky days. It’s a role Thomas should naturally gel with given his various incarnations as a Tour rider over the years. Rodríguez and Pidcock would do well to follow his example if the Welshman sets the tone for the month of July.

Read more: Geraint Thomas leaves door open for one last GC challenge before retirement

Laurens De Plus

Team role: Super domestique

Tour de France pedigree: One start, back in 2019

Analysis: De Plus has become a vital cog in the Ineos mountain train over the last few years and was present when Thomas finished second at the Giro last year. A crash ended his Vuelta a España on stage 1 last autumn but he has been riding well this year with some impressive cameos during the early season. Currently at the Dauphiné, the 28-year-old will look to formalise his Tour de France spot and be the last line of defence for Ineos in the mountains come July. He’ll be on the team, of that there’s very little doubt.

Jonathan Castroviejo

Team role: Super domestique

Tour de France pedigree: Nine starts

Analysis: Castroviejo hasn’t missed a Tour de France since 2016 and has been ever-present in Ineos colours at the race since joining the team in 2018. A reliable workhorse, who rarely falters, Castroviejo is probably the first domestique down on the team sheet given his versatility and proven track record over three weeks and despite his age (37) he’s in line for a contract extension come the end of the year. Should make the Tour de France team.

Michał Kwiatkowski

Team role: Domestique

Tour de France pedigree: Nine starts, two stage wins

Analysis: Winner of the Grand Colombier stage of the Tour de France in 2023, Kwiatkowski has had a relatively quiet first half of the year with few results to speak of after sickness affected his spring. Still a class act all around, and a proven commodity when it comes to stage hunting in the Tour, the Pole should be in line for a tenth Tour de France appearance. A strong showing at the Dauphiné wouldn’t do his chances of selection any harm at all. If he’s fit and healthy he’ll be on the flight to Florence.

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Michał Kwiatkowski has a habit of coming up trumps when Ineos Grenadiers most need him

Ben Turner

Team role: Domestique

Tour de France pedigree: One start in 2023

Analysis: With Luke Rowe hanging up his wheels at the end of the year, and no longer in Tour de France contention, a spot has opened up on the Ineos roster for a solid domestique who can protect leaders on the flats and keep them out of trouble from crashes and potential splits. Turner looks ideally suited to such a role and has duly made the long list for the Tour de France. He’s had a solid but not spectacular season so far and as with a a large portion of the riders on this list is currently racing the Dauphiné. Based on the names on the long list, Turner should make the squad given the fact that his best duties offer the team something slightly different to the likes of Kwiatkowski and Castroviejo.

Omar Fraile

Team role: Domestique

Tour de France pedigree: Five starts, won a stage back in 2018

Analysis: Fraile might not be the force he once was when at his cavalier stage hunting best but he remains a viable option within the Ineos engine room. The Spaniard raced back-to-back Grand Tours for the team in 2023, so his stock at Ineos is relatively secure, and the fact that he was handed a two-year contract extension at the end of last year speaks volumes about his importance within the team. That said, the 33-year-old’s place on the Tour squad is far from certain at this point. Much depends on whether the team look to give one of their more youthful riders an opportunity.

Egan Bernal

Team role: Domestique

Tour de France pedigree: 2019 Tour de France winner

Analysis: Egan Bernal has been one of the success stories at Ineos Grenadiers this season, snaffling up top-tens in every stage race he’s started and earning much admiration after a long and difficult road back from the crash that almost cost him his life. The Tour de Suisse marks the Colombian’s next appointment and the WorldTour race will tell us much about the 27-year-old’s current condition and whether he has made another step towards finding his very best condition. Either way, a Tour de France slot looks nailed on but his exact role within the race isn’t quite locked in yet. Going to the Tour, supporting the GC riders and claiming a stage would represent a massive success for the 2019 winner.

Read more: Tom Pidcock: It’s so nice to see Egan Bernal smashing it again

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Egan Bernal managed to finish last year's Tour de France but should be a much stronger competitor this time around

Kim Heiduk

Team role: Domestique

Tour de France pedigree: Yet to make his debut

Analysis: Heiduk made his Grand Tour debut at the Vuelta last year and signed a contract extension with the team soon after. This year has seen the German’s campaign punctuated by a snapped collarbone in March but he’s raced in late May and like Bernal will head to the Tour de Suisse at the weekend. To be frank, Heiduk making the Tour de France is a longshot but should Ineos need a late switch or alternative option then the 24-year-old should be ready to step up.

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