James Piccoli and his teammates from Israel – Premier Tech remained in the peloton in the second stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné on Monday, as the breakaway of the day went all the way. On the rugged 170 kilometer course between Saint-Péray and Brives-Charensac, Frenchman Alexis Vuillermoz (TotalEnergies) scored his first victory in more than three years, which allowed him to climb to the top of the provisional general classification.

Olivier Le Gac (Groupama – FDJ) launched his sprint about 300 meters from the line, quickly widening a gap of about fifteen meters. Vuillermoz went in pursuit of his compatriot and he beat him in the last 50 meters. Le Gac finally finished third, behind the Norwegian Anders Skaarseth (Uno-X Pro Cycling).

Yellow jersey at the start of the stage, the Belgian Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) was the first of the peloton to reach the finish, except that his delay of 5 seconds makes him slip to fourth in the provisional classification. Ranked 17e Monday, Australian Simon Clark (+5 seconds) was Piccoli’s best teammate who ranked 82e of the day, also 5 seconds behind the winner.

This eight-stage race represents something of a test for the Montrealer who is always bothered by a cold.

“Today I really felt a lot better, which is a good sign! recognized the Quebecer with a smile in his voice. ” [Mon rôle] was just trying to survive. The team tells me to take it day by day to see how my condition progresses. […] I tried to help the guys who wanted to be well placed for the final, so it’s a good sign for the days to come. »

Piccoli raised his hat to the five runaways who held on for 150 kilometers to battle for the stage victory.

“It’s still impressive, because we were driving behind. The last 30-40 kilometers was downhill and that’s usually a disadvantage for the breakaway, but clearly they were super strong, because it wasn’t like the peloton wasn’t pushing. It’s well deserved! »

Tuesday’s stage will be contested over a 169 kilometer course between Saint-Paulien and Chastreix-Sancy with a finish at the top of a second category pass.

“It’s not a super long climb, but we’ll see who’s in good shape. It’s going to be tough, that’s for sure,” concluded the 30-year-old cyclist.