The 2022 Tour de France begins its beautiful but brutal three-week journey through France (and Denmark, Belgium and Switzerland) on Friday. Two-time defending champion Tadej Pogacar is the -170 favorite (risk $170 to win $100) to win the yellow jersey in the latest Tour de France odds from Caesars Sportsbook. Last year's runner-up, Jonas Vingegaard, is second in the odds at +450 second choice, while Vingegaard's teammate, Primoz Roglic, is next in the odds at +500.

With so many variables in every Tour de France, you'll want to read how SportsLine senior writer Gene Menez, who correctly predicted the winners of the yellow, green and white jerseys in the 2019 Tour and the white jersey winner of last year's Tour, breaks down the race before making any 2022 Tour de France picks of your own.

A former reporter and associate editor for Sports Illustrated, where he covered an array of sports for almost 14 years, Menez has been obsessed with the Tour de France for almost four decades. He has been following the iconic three-week race since the mid-1980s when Greg LeMond was riding to three yellow jerseys.

Menez has analyzed this year's Tour de France route and contenders and has picked his top three finishers for the yellow jersey, as well as the winners of the green jersey (best sprinter), polka dot jersey (best climber) and white jersey (best young rider). 

We can tell you that Menez is picking Fabio Jakobsen (+550) to win the green jersey even though he is not the favorite. "He has been the best bunch sprinter in the world this year, with 10 victories worldwide," Menez told SportsLine.

Moreover, Menez's pick to win the yellow jersey is a rider who "is in terrific form." Menez also is high on a "strong climber" at "nice odds" to win the King of the Mountains jersey. You ABSOLUTELY need to see who it is before you lock in any picks.

So which rider wins the Tour de France 2022? Who finishes on the podium? And who captures the green, polka dot and white jerseys? ... Join SportsLine now to see which riders to be all over, all from the expert who has followed the Tour de France for almost four decades!