Critérium du Dauphiné: Bakelants wins stage 6

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Jan Bakelants (Omega Pharma - QuickStep) claimed stage 6 of the Criterium du Dauhpine in a two-man sprint ahead of Lieuwe Westra. The pair broke clear from a large break in the closing kilometres of the race, dropping Pim Ligthart (Lotto) before the finish.

Although Westra tried to attack several times he was unable to drop Bakelants. The Astana rider led the sprint out with 300 meters to go but Bakelants had enough in reserve and despite a tight angle was able to come through and take the win. Zdenek Stybar (Omega Pharma- QuickStep) took third, leading home the remnants of the break.

Chris Froome (Team Sky) would have hoped for a relatively calm day as leader as the race into the final weekend but the Tour de France champion was involved in a crash in the closing 10 kilometres. Although he was quickly back on his feet he looked to be nursing several cuts. Despite the fall Froome remains at the head of the overall standings, still twelve seconds clear of Alberto Contador (Tinkoff Saxo) and Wilco Kelderman (Team Belkin).

The stage was marked by a sixteen-man group breaking free from the peloton after roughly an hour of racing. With breaks having succeeded in the last two days optimism within the move was certainly high as Simon (Cofidis), Keukeleire (Orica-GreenEdge), Erviti (Movistar), Westra (Astana), Paulinho (Tinkoff-Saxo), Péraud (Ag2r-La Mondiale), Ligthart (Lotto Belisol), Saramtins (IAM Cycling), Bodnar (Cannondale), Voigt (Trek Factory Racing), Bakelants, Stybar (Omega Pharma-QuickStep), Damuseau (Giant-Shimano), Conti (Lampre-Merida), Tankink (Belkin) and Benedetti (NetApp-Endura) established an early lead.

With only fourth category climbs on the stage the break’s chances looked decent, with Sky only concerned with keeping Froome out of trouble with two serious mountain stages set for the weekend. Both Astana and Tinkoff had posted men in the break but Europcar, FDJ, Katusha, Garmin, and the race leader’s team had missed the move.

The break quickly established a buffer of four minutes but with Bakelants at less than seven minutes off the race lead Sky made sure that the break didn’t pose a GC threat. The British team did allow the move to creep out to nearly six minutes but with help from FDJ and very briefly Katusha, they began to chip away at the leaders’ advantage.

Westra and Bakelants attack

Inside the closing 25 kilometres and with the break at 4’11, Ligthart made his move, slipping clear on the penultimate fourth category climb. He was immediately joined by an impressive looking Westra, who was looking to improve Astana's poor win rate this season. The pair worked well but there was still life in the main break and Jens Voigt was the first to try and close the gap. The German only managed to drag the rest of the move closer to the leading pair, creating a perfect launch for Bakelants to first catch a tiring Ligthart and then link up with Westra.

The trio immediately sensed the opportunity and pressed on towards the final climb. By now there was no chance of the peloton catching the break and attention turned to teams keeping their GC riders out of trouble on the twisting and undulating roads before the finish.

Despite the care, the race leader crashed. When cameras caught sight of him he was already on his feet and trying to resolve the mechanical caused by his fall. A bike was quickly dispatched from the roof of the team car, as Geraint Thomas sat up and waited for his leader.

The pace eased up too with the bunch showing respect for the maillot jaune and waiting as up ahead Westra and Bakelants pressed on.

With Stybar blocking for his teammate the gap to the leading pair held at roughly 20 seconds. Ligthart was reeled in on the last ramp before the finish and despite a number of volleys from Westra, Bakelants held firm.

It was the Omega Pharma rider who led through the flamme rouge but Westra was the first to kick, bolting for the line with around 250 metres to go. The technical turns didn’t serve his acceleration well and Bakelants was able to remain in contact. Westra tried to chaperone Bakelants towards the barriers as the road opened up at the finish but the Astana man was generous to leave a gap, enough for Bakelants to surge through and take the stage. 

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