Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step) will aim for stage wins rather than the points classification at the 2027 Tour de France, with the opening stage from Edinburgh to Carlisle on July 2 offering him a chance at the first yellow jersey.
"The green jersey is not a big goal for me, the goal is to go for the stages," Merlier said in comments shared by the race organiser on October 22, the day the route was presented in Paris.
The organiser describes the 185km opening stage as a chance for a sprinter to take yellow. It includes 2,000 metres of climbing, mostly on long false flats, and a single categorised climb, before a flat run into Carlisle with a short finishing straight. Time bonuses of 10, six and four seconds go to the first three on every road stage.
"That chance is high, but there are 2,000 metres of elevation gain. That is certainly not nothing," Merlier told Sporza of a bunch finish on stage one. "In 2025, we got it wrong with the team in Lille, and I am happy that another opportunity is coming."
The organiser lists seven flat stages, but Merlier doubted they would all end in sprints. "They looked like fairly tough sprint stages to me," he said. "I still have to look at the stages again, but if we can sprint four times, that will already be very good."
The two British stages after Carlisle are both 223km and classified as hilly. Stage three into Cardiff features the Côte de Caerffili, 2km at 8.1%, 12km from the finish.
Merlier won three stages at the 2026 Tour, taking his career total to six, yet trailed Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) 377 points to 307 in the green jersey standings after stage 13. He abandoned on stage 15.
His place in Soudal Quick-Step's Tour line-up is not certain. Paul Magnier won three stages and the points classification at the 2026 Giro d'Italia, where he also took the opening pink jersey, and the team could pick either sprinter or take both.
"It is possible that the team sees more opportunities for Paul," Merlier said. "We get along very well, and if we have to switch, I can live with it."
Cover image credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com
