Tour De France 2013: Christopher Froome's Gutsy Solo Act Will Lead to Victory

Christopher Froome pulled ahead of the field with another outstanding showing in Stage 11 of the 2013 Tour de France on Wednesday—the fourth straight stage he's finished with the yellow jersey. 

He also set a blistering pace and gained ground on all his rivals, as noted by Team Sky's official Twitter account:

Froome's performance this past week is all the more impressive when you consider that he's had zero help from his Sky Procycling teammates. Richie Porte took a serious dive down the board in the mountains during Stage 9, finishing the day in 33rd place—18 minutes and 30 seconds behind Froome—after starting the stage in second place.

After his gutsy performance to claim the yellow jersey in Stage 9 to take a one-minute, 25-second lead over Alejando Valverde, Froome said, “It was one of the hardest days I’ve had on my bike," as noted by Universal Sports:

Incredibly, Froome has continued to pull away from the field in the two stages since then. Here is an overview of the top 10 in the time classification heading into Stage 12:

RANK	RIDER	TEAM	TIMES	GAP
1.	Chris Froome	Sky Pro Cycling	42h 29' 24"
2.	Alejando Valverde	Movistar Team	42h 32' 49"	+ 03' 25"
3.	Bauke Mollema	Belkin Pro Cycling	42h 33' 01"	+ 03' 37"
4.	Alberto Contador	Team Saxo-Tinkoff	42h 33' 18"	+ 03' 54"
5.	Roman Kreuziger	Team Saxo-Tinkoff	42h 33' 21"	+ 03' 57"
6.	Laurens ten Dam	Belkin Pro Cycling	42h 33' 34"	+ 04' 10"
7.	Michal Kwiatkowski	Omega Pharma-Quck Step	42h 34' 08"	+ 04' 44"
8.	Nairo Quintana	Movistar Team	42h 34' 42"	+ 05' 18"
9.	Rui Costa	Movistar Team	42h 35' 01"	+ 05' 37"
10.	Jean-Christophe Peraud	AG2R La Mondiale	42h 35' 03"	+ 05' 39"

*Full classifications and results can be found at LeTour.com

Froome's strategy to take the yellow jersey early in the race was unexpected by many riders, as noted by Jon Brand of the New York Times:

"

When he mounted an attack on the final climb of Stage 8 on Saturday, a move that gave him a commanding lead in the Tour de France, many of Christopher Froome’s rivals were caught by surprise. It was too early in the three-week race, they thought, to take the yellow jersey.

"

As you can see from the classifications, however, Froome has gained considerable ground on his rivals since claiming the yellow jersey.

One of his chief rivals, Alberto Contador, knows that Froome is "at a difficult level to beat," as noted by VeloNation.com's Shane Stokes:

Anything can happen.

One would have to be foolish to assume that Froome will just waltz into the finish line without some trying moments along the way. With 10 stages left, Froome still has some monumental personal challenges ahead of him.

That said, the way he's working right now, it would be just as foolish to bet against him. 

With nearly three-and-a-half minutes of wiggle room and a determination that could move mountains, Froome will not relinquish his lead.

He will soldier on ahead of the pack as a lone wolf and finish the race with his first career win at the Tour de France.

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