Peloton misses out on the stage win for just four seconds.
No matter what else will happen from now until Sunday, when the race concludes, this year’s Tour Auvergne - Rhône-Alpes is sure to earn a place in the history books after the breakaway made it for the third time since the start of the competition. Basically, all three road stages so far have been won by a rider who was part of a group that, contrary to expectations, managed to hold off the peloton who was targeting a bunch sprint.
This time, it happened on the roads to Montrond-les-Bains, where Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek) emerged victorious from the front group, just a handful of seconds ahead of the bunch. Valentin Paret-Peintre came home with the peloton and even managed to gain a place in the general classification ahead of Thursday’s stage.
On paper, that should give the sprinters another opportunity, but after everything that happened this week, the breakaway will be confident in its chances of fighting for a win in Parc des Oiseaux Villars-les-Dombes.
Photo credit: ©Dario Belingheri / Getty Images
