Alex Dowsett has had Friday's stage of the Tour de France circled on his calendar for some time.

The six-time British national time trial champion is not one of the big favourites to win the only individual race against the clock of this year's Tour, but if he has a chance at a stage victory, this is it.

The 30-year-old is riding the Tour for only the second time, four years after his ill-fated debut in which he crashed heavily on stage four, suffering injuries which would force him to abandon on stage 12.

Serious goals, then, for a man who faces all the other stresses and strains of riding the Tour de France.

Those stresses are only heightened for Dowsett's Katusha-Alpecin team, which urgently needs new sponsors to avoid closure at the end of the season.

Dowsett has one year left on his contract but could find himself looking for a new employer sooner than he thought, and acknowledged the Tour is a shop window for all riders.

All the more motivation for Friday's time trial. The 27km course, starting and finishing in Pau, is hilly but hardly mountainous, and Dowsett believes it could suit him.

The question mark is where his form will be 13 days into the race.

"This deep into a Grand Tour, it's not like a normal time trial because you're just battered and fatigued," he said. "It's just how hard your body and your legs will let you go.

"We're all in it to win it but it's the Tour de France, it's probably the second most competitive time trial of the year to the world championships. If I can just get it all out, I'll be happy."

Even if a stage win proves out of reach, Dowsett does not feel any pressure of expectation.

"Knowing what my foundation does and my story does, it is like I win a stage of the Tour de France every day," he said. "It is a much bigger picture."