Criterium du Dauphine stage 2 - Live coverage

Bonjour and welcome to the Cyclingnews live coverage of stage 2 of the Criterium du Dauphine.

The sun is out for the start of the 169.8km stage and the riders are lining up for the start. 

We'll have all the action from the hilly stage. We're expecting a lot of attacks to join the break of the day and then more  attacks to distance the sprinters. 

Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) claimed the fourth stage victory of his career in the Critérium du Dauphiné on Sunday's opening day of racing in a closely contested bunch sprint.

A late surge by Ethan Hayter (Ineos Grenadiers) up the left hand side of the slightly rising finishing straight could not stop Van Aert from comfortably outpacing the Briton, taking the stage and the first lead in the race. Sean Quinn (EF Education-Easy Post) was third.

Van Aert's victory came after a hectic final hour in which out-and-out sprinters like Dylan Groenewegen (Bike Exchange-Jayco) were dropped on a late climb and then, despite a frantic pursuit, were unable to regain contact.

Instead, the sprint was disputed by allrounders like Van Aert and Hayter, already sparring partners in multiple tough sprints like Sunday's last year throughout the Tour of Britain.

The riders roll out of the centre of Saint-Péray and the flag will soon drop for the official stage start. 

Wout van Aert wears the yellow jersey today after his win on Sunday.  

This is the route of today's stage

The stage starts on flat roads but soon heads into the hills as it goes west towards Brives-Charensac through the Ardeche countryside.  
 

The stage includes four Cat 3 and Cat 4 climbs, the last coming just 9km from the finish.

151 riders are in the peloton. 

The flag is waved and so lets race. Here we go! 

It's been a fast start in the sun and the peloton have already covered 7km. 

Matt Walls (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Aurélien Paret Peintre (AG2R Citroën) have been involved in a crash but both get up and race on.

After 10km five rider try a move but the peloton is in pursuit.

After riding along the Rhone river to Tournon-sur-Rhone, the peloton is about to turn left into the hills.  

We should soon see  more attacks. 

AG2R are expecting a hot day and the need for lots of drinks. 

There are still no successful attacks after 20km of racing but a number of riders are active  and ready to go in an attack, including Xandres Vervloesem (Lotto-Soudal). 

Indeed, as the road climbed into the hills, a small group has gone away.

These are the attackers: 

Xandres Vervloesem (Lotto-Soudal)

Kevin Vermaerke (DSM)

Jonas Gregaard (Uno-X)

Anthony Delaplace (Arkea-Samsic)

Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Energy)

Olivier Le Gac (Groupama FDJ)

Alexis Vuillermoz (TotalEnergies) was the last to catch the breakaway train, jumping across the gap as it opened to 25 seconds.

The peloton is happy to let the sextet go clear. They already have a lead of a minute.

The peloton have eased significantly as the break pushes on, extending their gap to 3:20. 

Van Aert's Jumbo-Visma teammates are setting the pace behind, but the gap is up to 3:30 after 25km of the stage. 

Chris Froome is riding the Dauphine and spoke before the start of stage 2. 

Click the link below for the full story. 

Chris Froome: People need to remember where I've come from

"Basically, it’s just been an uninterrupted period since January until now of being able to work consistently and move things in the right direction. I’m seeing the results of that," he said.

Froome, who will also race the Mont Ventoux Challenge next week, is hoping that he can prove himself worthy of a spot on Israel-Premier Tech’s Tour de France squad.

Voila'! 

Here is the attack of the day. 

In case you missed it, an all-new Trek Madone broke cover at Critérium du Dauphiné on Sunday. It has a very different seat tube design.

Click below for the full story.

Spotted: All-new Trek Madone breaks cover at Critérium du Dauphiné

As the break heads towards the first categorised climb of the day, their lead is up to 4:25. 

Jumbo-Visma are riding but seem to be calling the bluff of other teams. They will have to help the chase if they want a chance of victory later.

Here's the break of the day. 

The sextet and the peloton will soon climb the Côte de Désaignes and the Côte de Saint-Agrève, adding an extra twist to the racing.

It will reveal the strength and unity of the break and the strength and determination of the peloton. 

While there was no breakaway for the opening 20km, the average speed for the first hour was a fast 44.8km/h.

Kiwi Chris Harper is doing a lot of the early chase work for Jumbo-Visma. 

He did a similar hard shift yesterday and was rewarded with van Aert winning the stage.  

Regarding the new Trek Madone bike spotted at the Dauphine on Sunday, Cyclingnews Senior Tech Writer Josh Croxton has further details and thoughts on 'that' seat tube.  

New Trek Madone: Everything we know so far

105km to go

Xandres Vervloesem (Lotto-Soudal), Kevin Vermaerke (Team DSM), Jonas Gregaard (Uno-X), Anthony Delaplace (Arkea-Samsic), Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Energy) and Olivier Le Gac (Groupama-FDJ) lead by 4:10.

Xandres Vervloesem (Lotto-Soudal) made sure he was first over the summit of the Côte de Désaignes to score 2 KOM points. 

Next up is the 5.6km long Côte de Saint-Agrève.

103km to go

Ineos riders are tucked in on Chris Harper's wheel as he leads the peloton.

They are 3:55 down on the attackers now.

Xandres Vervloesem (Lotto-Soudal) is the first over the Côte de Saint-Agrève, scoring a further 2 points as he chases the KOM jersey.  

100km to go

Down the descent for the breakaway and it's a 3:55 advantage for them.

The gap goes up slightly past the four-minute mark as the breakaway pushes down the descent.

The riders will reach the town of Le Cheylard soon. They'll begin the 11.6km climb of the Col de Mezilhac soon after. It's long but gentle at a gradient of 4.1%.

85km to go

After that fast descent, the gap between the break and peloton has gone up to 4:30. 

The average speed of the race so far is 42kph.

A look at the breakaway out on the road at the moment.

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BikeExchange-Jayco now working at the head of the peloton as the breakaway start the second-category climb.

75km to go

4:25 between break and peloton currently.

Josef Cerny (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl) has abandoned the race.

70km to go

The break and peloton are climbing now and the situation is largely unchanged so far.

The Col de Mezilhac is the biggest challenge of the day for the sprinters. After the top there's a spell on the plateau, then a descent, then the fourth-category Côte de Rohac at 9km from the line.

BikeExchange-Jayco's work has shaved some seconds off the time gap. It's down to around 4:10 now.

66km to go

Vervloesem is struggling in the breakaway and looks to be dropping.

The climbs is hurting more and more. There is still 4km to climb too. 

The Col de Mézilhac snakes up into the hills and then the Le Gerbier-de-Jonc sprint point ends the long mid-stage section in the hills.  

After a long descent there is the short but nasty Côte de Rohac climbs that tops out with 9km to go.

Laurens de Plus has taken over the pace setting ands he seems to be trying to up the pace and hurt some of the sprinters.

And there we go, the high pace has lead to Dylan Groenwegen being  distanced. He has two teammates with him to help with the chase.

Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain Victorious) has abandoned. He rode the Giro d'Italia and so is perhaps fatigued by all the racing.  

60km to go

The five up front are still working well together. 

They have lost 30 seconds on the climb but know can use the climb to try to maintain their gap on the peloton. The race to stay away will continue over the climbs ahead.  

The attackers grab bidons and bars over the top of the Col de Mézilhac, with Vuillermoz first to the top to score 5 points. 

Behind Dylan Groenewegen and 4 teammates are chasing at 1:00 behind the peloton. They face a hard, painful pursuit match.

At the head of the peloton James Shaw of EF and De Plus of Ineos are riding a hard pace, specifically to hurt the Dutch sprinters and his like. 

55km to go

The peleton is lined out, with little time to enjoy the superb views across the green hills of the Ardeche in early June.

The peloton drives on and so Groenewegen is now at 2:00. That means his sprint chances are surely over.  

The peloton is near the sprint point and the top of the plateau but the road then continues to dip and rise. 

Groenewegen and his hard working BikeExchange teammates are 1:30 back. They will use the long descent to try to close the gap.

45km to go

The five attackers battle for the sprint but then quickly work together again. 

There lead is down to 1:40 as the peloton comes after then. 

The Le Gerbier-de-Jonc sprint was close but the USA's Kevin Vermaerke (Team DSM) takes the 3 second bonus. 

Olivier Le Gac (Groupama-FDJ) was 2nd and took 2 seconds and Anders Skaarseth
(Uno-X) was third and took 1 second.

The clouds are gathering over the race. 

Here is the sprint action.

Ineos take on their feed musettes as other riders grab bidons from the roadside.

35km to go

The peloton is only 1:30 down on the break but the Groenewegen group is losing ground and is at 3:40. They're going backwards and so may soon throw in the towel. 

There is little chance they can catch the peloton now. 

Ineos ride up front in the peloton.

30km to go

The speed is high on the plateau roads. The riders know they will soon dive down the descent and then hit the short climb with 9km to go.

25km to go

The peloton sweeps left in one long line. 

The break of Kevin Vermaerke (Team DSM), Jonas Gregaard (Uno-X), Anthony Delaplace (Arkea-Samsic), Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Energy) and Olivier Le Gac (Groupama-FDJ) hold a 1:30 gap but will have to fight to keep it. 

The descent starts to twist down the hillside. 

If you want to watch the finale of the stage and the rest of the race, check out our special guide. 

Click on this link: How to watch the 2022 Critérium du Dauphiné – Live streaming

20km to go

The riders are touching 80km/h. 

Stay safe out there. 

Ineos are driving the peloton at speed, keen to keep control before the late climbs.

Jumbo and EF are up there too. 

The Côte de Rohac comes in 8km. Before is a more gradual climb but this Cat 4 climb  is harder: 1.2km at 5%, with an opening section ast 8%.

The break leads by 1:10. Can they hold on? 

12km to go

The gap to the attackers ias down to 1:00. 

The roads to the final climb are narrow. That could play a part in the success of any attacks. 

The attackers hit the late climb. 

Toms Skujiņš of Trek is leading the peloton at just 45 seconds behind.

A narrow bridge at the bottom of the climb lines out the peloton. 

Trek have 3 riders up front as they try to split the peloton.  

The attackers dance on the pedals as they fight the gradient.

Kenny Elissonde leads the peloton but is unsure of sprinter Jasper Stuyven is there for the sprint.

Kevin Vermaerke (Team DSM), Jonas Gregaard (Uno-X), Anthony Delaplace (Arkea-Samsic), Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Energy) and Olivier Le Gac (Groupama-FDJ) lead by just 30 seconds.

But who will close them down to try to snatch the stage victory?  

5km to go

The break refuses to give up hope. 

Allez le gars!

Behind other teams are fighting for position but they are at 40 seconds. 

Have they blown it? 

Jumbo take over on the front but they may have left it too late. 

Van Aert is fourth wheel but they surely have left it too late to hit maximum speed.

The 5 lead by 30 seconds with just 3km to go. They can't ease up a single second.

2km to go

Kevin Vermaerke (Team DSM), Jonas Gregaard (Uno-X), Anthony Delaplace (Arkea-Samsic), Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Energy) and Olivier Le Gac (Groupama-FDJ) are still out of sight.

But will they start to play games and ease up?

Last KM! 

Kevin Vermaerke (Team DSM) leads through the final corners.

A five-rider sprint!

Le Gac goes early.

But Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Energy) chases him to the line and beats him to win the stage! 

Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Energy) was caught out by Le Gac's attack and was in a lower gear but he fought and fought all the way to the line.

Chapeau Alexis!

The peloton managed to reduce the gap but Wout van Aert won the sprint for sixth place at 5 seconds. 

TotalEnergies seem happy. 

Here's the sprint from the side of the road.

Le Gac made a well-timed power attack from the back of the attack but Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Energy) refused to give up the chase and came past to win it.  

Thanks to a ten-second time bonus for his stage win and a five-second gap, Alexis Vuillermoz (TotalEnergies) takes the yellow leader's jersey. 

That's a fine double success for the French rider and his team.

Manager Jean-Rene Bernaudeau can open a bottle of champagne later today.

Here's the shot JR can toast. 

Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Energy) happily celebrates on the podium. He was in shock at the finish.

Alexis Vuillermoz is now 34 and had not won a race since 2019 after a series of injuries. 

He is happy to be back and in the yellow jersey.  

Vuillermoz has suffered kneecap, shoulder and pelvis fractures in the last 2 years.

For the stage results, click below. 

Here's a great shot as the line nears. It shows Le Gac's disappointment and Vuillermoz joy.  

This was the result Vuillermoz can hang on his wall at home.

This is the moment Vuillermoz pulled on the leader's yellow jersey.

To read our full stage report and results, and to see our growing photo gallery of all the action, click below.

Vuillermoz wins Critérium du Dauphiné stage 2 from the breakaway

Van Aert swapped the leader's yellow jersey for the green points jersey but could take it back on Tuesday.

Stage 3 is from Saint-Paulien to Chastreix-Sancy over a hilly distance of 169km. 

Much of the climbing comes in the final third of the stage, with a final 6.2km climb at 5.6% up to near the finish.  

Thanks for joining us for full live coverage of stage 2 of the Dauphine. 

Join us on Tuesday for further live coverage.