As it happened: Race lead changes hands on rapid Critérium du Dauphiné stage 4 time trial

Hello and welcome back to Cyclingnews' live coverage of the Critérium du Dauphiné!

Action continues on stage 4 with a 17.4km race against the clock from Charmes-sur-Rhône to Saint-Péray, with the GC favourites expected to battle it out for the stage win.

Today's race against the clock runs in the usual format of last to first on GC. Check out all the key start times below:

Critérium du Dauphiné 2025 stage 4 time trial start times

Here's a look at the profile of the 17.4km, with that climbing section in the middle of the route set to prove vital in the fight for the stage win.

Olympic and world time trial champion Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) is starting the day as the favourite. Read what he had to say about the ITT yesterday below:

'We're confident that I'm in good shape' – Remco Evenepoel positive ahead of Critérium du Dauphiné time trial and first GC test

Domen Novak (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) will be the first rider to start the TT. He's due off the start ramp at 14:15 local time in France, so in just under 10 minutes time.

Make sure to look out for Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) as one of the later starters. He's continuing to show his promise as a GC rider. Read more about him here:

Paris-Nice runner-up Florian Lipowitz moves back onto GC radar at Critérium du Dauphiné

Temperatures are plenty hot in Charmes-sur-Rhône, up at 30 degrees with Novak minutes away from setting off.

More big news coming out this morning is the reported departure of AG2R La Mondiale as a co-sponsor of the French WorldTour team, according to Le Télégramme. Read the full news story below:

AG2R La Mondiale reportedly due to end co-sponsorship of longstanding French WorldTour team, squad refuses to comment

Critérium du Dauphiné stage 4 underway

Domen Novak has kicked things off on stage 4 for UAE, with Johan Price-Pejtersen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) setting off not long after. There will be just one-minute intervals between all the starters today.

A reminder that Iván Romeo (Movistar) will start today's time trial last, after his breakaway stage win yesterday. Catch up with how he got into the yellow jersey by reading our stage report:

Critérium du Dauphiné: Iván Romeo solos to victory from breakaway on stage 3

Magnus Cort (Uno-X Mobility) has just started. Expect either him or compatriot Price-Pejtersen to take the early lead once this initial wave of riders reaches the finish.

The initial benchmark at the intermediate time check 10.5km into the route should be set soon, with Novak and Casper Pedersen (Soudal-QuickStep) entering the second half of the route. 

With the first few riders through that check, it's Enzo Leijnse (Picnic PostNL) who has come through it in a commanding fastest time, beating Søren Wærenskjold (Uno-X Mobility) by 10 seconds, Novak by 48 seconds, and Price-Pejtersen by 50.  

First finisher

The first finishing time of the day is set by Novak in Saint-Péray, with the Slovenian crossing the line after 24 minutes and 43 seconds. He won't need to get in the hot seat, however, with several faster riders not far behind him on the course.

Wærenskjold blows that first time out the water, finishing nearly two minutes quicker with a time of 23:00.

Leijnse is unable to kick on from the quick time he set at the intermediate check, losing 37 seconds to the Norwegian champion Wærenskjold on the 7km run to the finish.

Few riders have made much of an impression on the intermediate times of Wærenskjold and Leijnse, but Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and current Kind of the Mountains Paul Ourselin (Cofidis) have come closest, within 20 seconds.

Another possible early challenger, Victor Campenaerts (Visma-Lease a Bike) has just started. He's not as much as a TT specialist as he used to be, but expect a solid time from the Belgian in around 20 minutes time.

A look at the early stage leader and Norwegian national ITT champion Søren Wærenskjold in full flight.

Former time trial world champion Tobias Foss (Ineos Grenadiers) is absolutely flying on the course, setting a new best time of 14:53 at the checkpoint. This beats Leijnse's previous best by 51 seconds.

Foss' Ineos teammate Michael Leonard has followed him through the checkpoint with the new second fastest time. It will be interesting to see how the pair on the British team finish in comparison to Wærenskjold.

New best time at the finish

Foss continued to impress in the last 7km of the time trial, beating Wærenskjold's time at the finish by a full minute. The time to beat now sits at 22:00, with the Norwegian's average speed at 47.4kph.

Ineos now sit 1-2 provisionally at the finish, with Leonard continuing to the line at great pace. The young Canadian finished the 17km 35 seconds slower than Foss.

Here's what Foss had to say to reporters at the finish:

"I think definitely this TT is suited for a time trial bike as long as you can push the power, so for me it was no question, but I have to admit I was really surprised when I saw the wall in front of us," said Foss, in reference to the climb in the middle of the route.

"I'm expecting some nucleur stuff from Jonas and Pogi today. I don't think I have a chance to be honest, but I gas it a good crack. I think it was a really good TT from me, but I'm curious to see how fast they will go."

Foss has not been challenged by any of the recent finishers. Here's a look at him during the time trial, with his former world champion's rainbow bands on show at the end of his sleeves. 

Pierre Thierry (Arkéa-B&B Hotels) has just finished and set the third fastest time of the stage. But he was still 59 seconds slower than Foss, showing just how well the Ineos rider was going.

We're around halfway through the running on stage 4, with just over 70 riders still to start.

No one has yet made an impression on Foss' time, but French hope Rémi Cavagna (Groupama-FDJ) has just started.

Finally, a challenger emerges for Foss, and it's Thibault Guernalec (Arkéa-B&B Hotels), who crosses the intermediate time check just 1 second slower than the Ineos rider.

Guernalec faded in the final 7km and was unable to better Foss' time at the finish. The French rider now sits second, but he lost 8 seconds after that intermediate check.

Cavagna has lived up to the billing and cross the intermediate time check in a new fastest time. He's beat Foss by 16 seconds, so has quite the buffer to defend in the final 7km.

50 riders remaining

Just 50 starters remain on stage 4 of the Dauphiné, with the big GC stars coming soon.

New best time at the finish

Rémi Cavagna takes over from Tobias Foss in the hotseat, setting a new best time of 21:57.

An interesting difference in the pacing plans of the provisional top two on the stage, with Cavagna clearly committing an awful lot on the climb to build a sizable 16-second lead over Foss, 13 seconds of which he lost in the final 7km. A gamble of not, it paid off for the French rider.

The GC favourites aren't too far away from starting their races against the clock now, with Evenepoel off at 16:33, Vingegaard at 16:35, and Pogačar at 16:37.

Current leader on stage 4, Rémi Cavagna.

The lower part of the climb really is steep, with the GC favourites, as Foss expected, surely going to be blasting their way into the lead.

With French fans already enjoying the day, young GC hope Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious) is also going well, sweeping up his minute-man on the climb.

It's time for Romain Bardet (Picnic PostNL) to start, which huge cheers meeting him off the ramp. With retirement just days away for the Frenchman, he'll be enjoying this day of suffering.

Sepp Kuss crosses the line in fifth, 51 seconds slower than Cavagna. His work will start properly later in the week, as one of Jonas Vingegaard's key domestiques on Visma-Lease a Bike.

Junior time trial world champion Paul Seixas (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) is the latest to get going in Charmes-sur-Rhône. At 18, he's one of the top prospects in the world. Read more about him below:

'If there's an opportunity to seize, I'll seize it' – 18-year-old Paul Seixas takes another step at Critérium du Dauphiné

Current stage standings with 30 riders to start

1. Rémi Cavagna (Groupama-FDJ) – 21:27
2. Tobias Foss (Ineos Grenadiers) – +0:03
3. Thibault Guernalec (Arkéa-B&B Hotels) – +0:12
4. Michael Leonard (Ineos Grenadiers) – +0:38
5. Sepp Kuss (Visma-Lease a Bike) – +0:51

Lenny Martinez goes second fastest at the intermediate time check, just 16 seconds slower than Cavagna after his favoured terrain up the climb.

Magnus Sheffield cuts it fine on the start ramp, making some late changes to ensure he was starting in the right gear, but the Ineos man is now underway. 

Big Slovenian support out on the roads for all of UAE Team Emirates-XRG. Pogačar's start isn't far away now.

Martinez crosses the line in fourth with a very solid time of 22:31, which I would say is a good time from the small French climber. He'll be eyeing up the big stages at the end of the week.

Some of the heavy hitters are getting underway now, with Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike) and French national champion Bruno Armirail (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) now on the course.

New Zealand national TT champ Finn Fisher-Black (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) beats Martinez's time to take fourth provisionally. 

Here come the GC hopefuls. Enric Mas (Movistar) is now underway on stage 4, with his teammate Romeo set to roll off the ramp in the yellow jersey at 16:45.

18-year-old Seixas reaches the intermediate check and it is very impressive, with the teenager only nine seconds down on his compatriot.

A look at super talent Seixas amid his TT effort. Let's see how he closes out the stage and how close he can get to Cavagna.

Bardet finishes the final time trial of his career after giving it everything to big cheers on the road. He stops the clock after just more than 23 minutes in 18th place provisionally.

15 riders to start

Just 15 starters remain on stage 4, including the big three GC favourites, who are completing their final warm-ups now.

Here comes Seixas to the line, and despite the clock being green for much of his final approach, he misses out behind his compatriot Cavagna by just 5 seconds. He sits in third provisionally.

Matteo Jorgenson is powering his way through the 17.4-kilometre course, setting a new best time at the intermediate check, 12 seconds quicker than Cavagna.

Remco Evenepoel underway

With his gold Olympic champion's helmet and world champion's rainbow jersey, Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) has got things started on stage 4. he's the big favourite for overall victory.

Now comes Vingegaard to the start ramp. It's going to be a thrilling end to this stage, with the big names coming in quick succession now. 

Tadej Pogačar is underway too now on stage 4. It's the first big test for the GC favourites at the Dauphiné, and could prove an important psychological win for whoever comes out on top, no matter how close the gaps are.

Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain-Victorious) comes across the line in a solid time of 22:28, in provisional sixth on the stage.

New best time at the finish

Jorgenson has scorched his way through from the intermediate time check to the finish, beating Cavagna's previous best time by almost 30 seconds. New time to beat at the finish: 21:28.

In the green jersey off the start ramp comes Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck). It will be intriguing to see how he attacks the race against the clock, with just four riders left to start now.

Evenepoel is working his way up the climb, with his minute-man Bastien Tronchon in his sights already.

It's a disappointing time at the finish for Carlos Rodríguez (Ineos Grenadiers), with the young Spaniard more than a minute down on Jorgenson at the finish. 

Vingegaard too has his minute mark nearly fully reeled in already, at roughly the same point as Evenepoel. 

Final rider off the start ramp

Iván Romeo has now started stage 4 of the Dauphiné, meaning all rider are either finished or on the course. He's the under-23 ITT world champion, but will need to produce his best if he is to keep yellow.

Say what you want about the helmet, but it was a great time from Jorgenson at the finish to move into the provisional lead.

Just as I typed that, Remco Evenepoel stormed through the time check with 7km remaining on the stage, and he's gone 30 seconds quicker then the American, with his two-minute man now in his sights too. Absolutely flying. 

Evenepoel's new time to beat at the check will be 13:53, with Vingegaard and Pogačar about to reach it soon.

Vingegaard is the first to cross it, and he's down on Evenepoel, albeit not by much, ceding 11 seconds to the Belgian in the opening 10.5km.

Evenepoel has overtaken two more riders on the road as he descends down to the finish.

Pogačar is also going to be down at the time check, but by how much?

it's the Slovenian who is the big loser at the time check, with Pogačar crossing the check 30 seconds slower than Evenepoel, and 19 seconds slower than Vingegaard. 

Evenepoel looks as though he is going to take the stage win, but Vingegaard will be very happy if he can maintain a 19-second lead over Pogačar at the finish.

Jorgenson salutes the TV camera, knowing he is beaten.

Evenepoel sets new best time

What a time from Evenepoel, and as it stands, it looks as though the Olympic and world champion is set for victory. He sets a new best time of 20:50, with an average speed of 50kph.

Here comes Vingegaard to the line, and he won't be beating Evenepoel, but it is a very solid time from the Dane. He crosses the line in provisionally second, 21 seconds slower than the Belgian star. 

The Aero Bullet at his very best on stage 4 today. He looks certain for victory. 

Pogačar is closing in on the final 700 metres and Evenepoel's time has already passed. He's going to have work to do after today.

Pogačar finishes provisional 4th

Pogačar crosses the line in a time of 21:40. He loses 48 seconds to Evenepoel, 28 to Vingegaard and 11 to Vingegaard. He's going to need to be at his attacking best to win this Dauphiné, but he won't panic.

Romeo has just gone through the time check and he's already ceded 1:06 to Evenepoel. He started the day 1:17 ahead of him.

The other important layer in the fight for yellow, though, is Florian Lipowitz, who needs to finish within 53 seconds of Evenepoel, and be 25 seconds quicker than Romeo.

Mathieu van der Poel has ridden well to finsh the stage 1:02 slower than Evenepoel in fifth provisionally on the stage. 

Lipowitz is coming to the line now, and he's just missed out on yellow. He cedes 56 seconds to Evenepoel, which is a great ride, but I think that will be just outside of what he needed (if my maths is correct).

Iván Romeo has fought valiantly in yellow but it is going to slip away from him. He finishes in 15th, with a time of 22:16, losing the jersey to the Belgian.

Stage 4 finish

Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) wins stage 4 of the Critérium du Dauphiné, also moving into the leader's yellow jersey as a result.

There was some discrepancy over whether today would actually be Soudal-QuickStep's 1000th victory, but the Belgian has held up a t-shirt and put on a hat celebrating the achievement nonetheless. 

Confirmation that Evenepoel took over the race lead by just four seconds from Lipowitz and nine seconds from Romeo. Van der Poel sits in fourth at 14 seconds, with Vingegaard two further back. Pogačar's losses will mean he starts stage 5, 38 seconds down on the Belgian.

Make sure to read our full stage report for the recap of a thrilling time trial at the Critérium du Dauphiné:

Critérium du Dauphiné: Remco Evenepoel crushes the clock on stage 4 individual time trial and takes overall lead

Here's what Evenepoel had to say after his stage win:

"My goal was to go as fast as possible until the intermediate, and then after that just try to get a steady pace to the finish line," Evenepoel said. 

"I think the advantage I had was that there was a lot of headwind in the valleys before and after the climb so I used that to really take the benefit of my position and of the power that I can do, and then in the climb I just went as fast as possible.

"I'm very happy with this victory, number 1000, as the cap says, of the team. So I'm very proud to have done it. One for Patrick [Lefevere, team founder] and the whole past and everything that he did for the team. This victory is for him and all of his career.

"I just saw the result when I was here on the rollers, so I jist focused on my own TT. We had a perfect plan of the pacing strategy and then I was going to see after the finish. In the end, it's quite a bit gap on a short TT, so I'm happy to have put over one second a kilometre on everybody, for some more than two, so I'm just super happy and proud with the feeling I'm having now."

No change for Paul Ourselin in the lead of the King of the Mountains classification for Cofidis today. Expect him to be in the break again tomorrow, with four categorised climbs lining the route.

The time trial also meant Mathieu van der Poel was under no threat in his pursuit of the green points jersey. Tomorrow may be slightly too easy for his punchy qualities, but expect him to be up there anyway as he was on stage 2. 

Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) has taken over the lead of the iconic yellow leader's jersey at the Critérium du Dauphiné. He's also in the lead of the best young rider's white jersey competition, which will be worn by second place Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) tomorrow.

Here's a look at tomorrow's 183-kilometre stage from Saint-Priest to Mâcon, and it should be the final chance for Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) and those wanting a sprint. Van der Poel should also be involed in the final, but it isn't as hard as stages 1, 2 or 3, so should be more simple for the Italian and his team.

That wraps things up for our live coverage of stage 4 of the Critérium du Dauphiné, but make sure to keep track of all the news coming out in the evening after a very significant time trial. We'll be back tomorrow for more on stage 5!