Tour De France 2012 Standings: Why Bradley Wiggins Won't Surrender Lead

There's been a lot of shock and awe surrounding Bradley Wiggins' emergence to the top of the 2012 Tour de France standings.

After all, Wiggins hasn't exactly had world-beating results in his last two years at the Tour de France.

But there were signs that Wiggins would make a run at victory this year, and he looks like the favorite now after Stage 10 on Wednesday.

Don't forget, Wiggins placed fourth in the 2009 Tour de France. He also looked to be in good form last year before a pile-up in Stage 7 forced him out of the race.

This year, Wiggins has three victories, including a third-place finish in the Vuelta. He became the only person in history to win the Paris-Nice, the Tour de Romandie and Critérium du Dauphiné in a single season.

Wiggins is currently 1 minute, 53 seconds ahead of defending champion Cadel Evans after another solid showing in Stage 10, finishing 13th in the first Alpine stage, one spot lower than Evans.

It doesn't hurt that Wiggins is on Team Sky, which helped pace him on the 17.4-kilometer ascension of Col du Grand Colombier on Wednesday. You certainly need good teammates to race well under those conditions.

Keep in mind, this came after Wiggins' time-trial stage win on Monday. He's admittedly stronger on time trials, but he certainly showed he could win the Tour as we get to the Alpine stages.

Wiggins may have been an afterthought at the Tour de France before this year, but he's making his presence known in 2012, and he's set to become the next champion in Paris.