Stage 8 wrap up: Win for Rabobank; Discovery under pressure

24 year-old Tour rookie Pieter Weening has given Rabobank its first stage win in this year's race, in a very close two man sprint against T-Mobile's Andreas Klöden. Weening was the sole survivor of an early breakaway, and was caught by Klöden at the top of the day's final climb, the Col de la Schlucht. The pair held a slender lead over a group of 32 riders containing Lance Armstrong (Discovery Channel), who was surprisingly isolated from his teammates after Alexandre Vinokourov (T-Mobile) stirred things up on the climb. But the chase was disorganised and the leaders gained nearly half a minute by the finish. Weening won the sprint by less than a tyre width from Klöden, while Alejandro Valverde (Illes Balears) took third place.

After the Discovery riders were dropped en masse on the Col de la Schlucht, the general classification changed somewhat, with Jens Voigt (CSC) moving into second overall at 1'00, ahead of Vinokourov (T-Mob). CSC and T-Mobile riders occupy most of the top 10, with George Hincapie (8th) as Discovery's second best rider.