Simon Yates not feeling sibling pressure

Adam Yates rode to fourth place and the best young riders' white jersey last summer, and now it is the turn of twin brother Simon to target the general classification in the Tour for the first time in his career.

"He always sets the bar pretty high," Yates said of Adam. "Even from early in our careers. He's a great rider."It's normal, natural even (for comparisons to be made). Not just in the Tour, but our whole careers. We're just used to it now."

Yates has prepared for the Tour by training with his brother in Andorra in recent weeks, and insisted he had received no gentle ribbing about the achievements he needs to live up to.

Asked if Adam had ever flaunted his white jersey, Simon said: "No, I've never even seen it. Just on the TV.

"He just told me to do the best I can," Yates added. "He knows exactly what it's like, how difficult it is. There are a lot of good guys here and it's going to be difficult to get a result."

The 24-year-old will lead the Orica-Scott team alongside Colombian Esteban Chaves, who was originally intended to have sole leadership before a knee injury disrupted his season. 

Adam rode to ninth place in the Giro d'Italia in May and will ride in the Vuelta a Espana later in the season.

Finding the right balance in a team with two general classification contenders can be difficult, but Yates is confident the renowned camaraderie within Orica-Scott, coupled with the friendship he has with Chaves, means there will be no problems for them.

"We rode together in the Vuelta last year and had a good relationship, not just between us but the whole team," he said. 

"We like to have fun, we like to race, and that goes a long way to ease the pressure and stress of racing."

Yates' focus will be the white jersey, awarded to the highest-placed finisher under the age of 26.

Although this will be his third Tour de France, it will be the first in which he focuses on the general classification fight, having ridden to gain experience in 2014 and targeting breakaways and stages in 2015.

Yates missed the 2016 Tour after a positive doping test - something for which the team accepted responsibility after failing to properly apply for a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) for his asthma inhaler.

His form in 2017 has been strong.

He won a stage of the Tour de Romandie on his way to second place overall, and was also a stage winner in Paris-Nice where he finished ninth.

This year's open Tour de France route, with only three summit finishes and as many as nine sprint stages, is one that Yates feels suits him.

"I think it's good for me," he said. "I like to race, I like aggressive racing. I think it could really play into my hands. It's a different Tour to normal so a few surprises might happen."