CHRIS Froome will win the Tour de France, a day before the contest even finishes.

The British cycling champ has all but claimed his third yellow jersey after finishing the penultimate stage of the Tour.

His lead over the nearest challenger Romain Bardet of four minutes, 11 seconds will not be challenged on the final stage of the Tour in Paris, meaning he is guaranteed to claim his third title.

Froome prepared for the contest right here in Southampton, making use of the University of Southampton's wind tunnel to perfect his posture and maximise speed.

In May this year, two hundred cyclist mobbed the Olympic gold medallist at the university after he posted an invite on social media to anyone who wanted to come for a ride with him to Winchester.

Huge numbers assembled despite Froome only announcing the ride hours earlier.

But only 30 people managed to keep up with the champion rider until the very end at Winchester Cathedral.

Speaking to the Daily Echo, Froome said: “We were down here doing some wind tunnel testing and I need to get a ride in today.

“Participation in cycling has exploded recently and I thought it would be a really good thing to get people on their bikes.

“I didn’t think many would turn up, I was expecting about 20 people and seeing this many people is just incredible.

“This is really exciting and it is a good way to interact with fans.  

Froome posed for dozens of selfies and chatted to members of Sotonia Cycling Club and the university's Road Cycling Club, who helped organise the event.