- Tweeter
republish
At the end of a lively stage and won by the Belgian Thomas De Gendt, the Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe left the pack in the last kilometers to recover the yellow jersey he had lost two days earlier for six small seconds. Thibaut Pinot has taken his wheel, he realizes the good operation of the day by climbing to the 3rd place of the general classification.
It was not a high mountain stage, and yet, the 200 kilometers between Mâcon and Saint-Étienne were certainly some of the hardest in this 2019 Tour de France. No major difficulty was in the program but the 3,750 meters of positive elevation of this 8th stage foreshadowed a difficult day for all the runners of the Great Loop.
The one that best managed to tame this hilly stage is Thomas De Gendt. The Belgian team Lotto-Soudal made a great number by winning in Saint-Etienne after a 200-kilometer breakaway started at kilometer 0 with three other riders. But the real lesson to be learned from these 200 kilometers is not that Thomas De Gendt is one of the best fighters in the world because we knew it already, but Alaphilippe always responds when we wait for him and that Thibaut Pinot is in the shape of his life.
Alaphilippe lights the wick
For the first, the equation was simple. With six seconds behind Giulo Ciccone, this stage was the perfect opportunity for the puncher to go get his yellow jersey which the Italian had dispossessed at the Plate of the Beautiful Girls two days earlier. Everyone was waiting for it and Alaphilippe did not disappoint. The second, however, could have chosen to stay warm in the pack, but he finally decided to play cards on the table, and he really took it.
As often, it was Julian Alaphilippe who lit the wick. The rider of the Deceunink-Quick Step team accelerated in the final of the Jallière coast to get five seconds of bonus. Thibaut Pinot , convinced that his compatriot was going to try something to recover his yellow tunic, was placed since the beginning of the mounted in his wheel and was able to follow the attack of Montluçonnais.
Pinot can not hide anymore
The two French will never come back on a Thomas De Gendt, but the peloton will never come back on them either. They realize the good operation of the day. Alaphilippe recovers his yellow jersey and now has 23 seconds ahead of Ciccone. Pinot, meanwhile, took 15 seconds to all the favorites to the final victory in this Tour and he climbs to the 3rd place of the general classification.
The rider of the Groupama-FDJ can no longer hide, he is one of the favorites for victory on the Champs-Elysées and it seems in the shape of his life. He can now see coming and mark his competitors to the pants even if he prefers not to rest on his achievements. After a week of racing, Thibaut Pinot is in any case in an ideal position. " I would have been told a week ago that I would be third (at this point in the race), I would have signed right now ," said the climber at the finish of the stage. Who knows, maybe this is the year or never for the Franc-Comtois.