Slovenian Primoz Roglic (Jumbo) took control of the Critérium du Dauphiné after the seventh and penultimate stage won by Spaniard Carlos Verona (Movistar), Saturday in Vaujany.
Roglic came back 13 seconds from Verona, survivor of a long breakaway, in this 134.8 kilometer stage which crossed two out-of-category passes, the Galibier and the Croix-de-Fer.
The Slovenian, number one favorite of the event, preceded his Danish teammate Jonas Vingegaard and the Australian Ben O’Connor by a dozen seconds.
In the final climb to the Vaujany station, Verona presented himself at the foot in the company of Frenchman Kenny Elissonde, whom he distanced on the first slopes, some 5.5 kilometers from the finish.
In the general classification, Roglic is now 44 seconds ahead of Vingegaard and 1 min 24 sec over O’Connor.
Verona, 29, claimed his first win since making his WorldTour debut in 2013.
The Belgian Wout van Aert, who wore the yellow jersey, gave up in the group of favorites two kilometers from the top of the Croix-de-Fer and finished late.
Sunday, the last stage ends at the Plateau de Solaison, a hard ascent of 11.3 kilometers (at 9.2%), at the end of a 138.8 kilometer route which also crosses Plainpalais and Colombière, two mountain passes first category.
“A demanding day, but a great day! -James Piccoli
On this high mountain day that he dreaded, James Piccoli (Israel – Premier Tech) did very well by taking 27th place (+3 minutes 40 seconds).
The Montrealer remained in the first group of favorites in the second big difficulty of the day, the Col de la Croix de Fer, with about thirty kilometers to go where we saw him cling to Wout Van Aert. A few moments later, 1.5 kilometers from the summit, the yellow jersey was ejected from the group, while the Quebecer clung to it with all his might to stay there in order to rock with the group on the descent.
” I’m a bit tired. It was a demanding day, but a great day! admitted Piccoli, adding that he knew how to climb at his own pace so as not to fall into the red. “I would have thought he (Van Aert) would go over the pass, because he looked comfortable, so that surprised me. But hey, he’s still a great champion who has already won two stages (since the start of the Criterium) and he’s still quite impressive! »
“I managed to start the last climb with the peloton, but then I lacked a bit to be with the best. But hey, it’s a good sign for tomorrow and the next races, ”continues the 30-year-old cyclist, recalling that he had been bothered by a cold at the start of the Tour.
“I’m not far from the best. »
The outcome of the race was decided on the last ascent, the Vaujany climb, where the eventual winner, the Spaniard Carlos Verona (Movistar), broke away from the Frenchman Kenny Ellisonde (Trek Segafredo). Behind, in the group of favorites, the Dane Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) put the gas to clean up for just under 2 kilometers, which allowed Primoz Roglic to go solo in pursuit of the Spaniard alone in the lead whose advance melted like snow in the sun.
Verona was still able to resist the formidable comeback of the Slovenian to claim his first victory in the professional ranks.
The Quebecer saw his teammate and four-time Tour de France winner, Briton Chris Froome, not start the stage due to health problems.
“Chris is a leader and a guy with a lot of experience. He wasn’t feeling great, so for his health and the races to come, it was better for him not to push too much,” analyzed Piccoli, adding that his teammates Omer Goldstein and Simon Clarke crashed during the race, but that they were able to reach the finish.
“That’s cycling: it’s not always an easy sport. It is certain that this year, we had our fare share of problems…”
In the general classification, Piccoli’s fine performance allowed him to move from 111th to 79th place (+27 minutes 17 seconds).
