There are lots of climbs today and things are expected to build up to an exciting climax here in Belgium. Speculation is rife who will take the big GC prize CDiv2 leaders Het Nieuwsblad with Dieter Cappelle
currently at 1.08 could possibly challenge Tyskie's decent punchaer Julian David Muñoz Giraldo
being talked up as a stage favourite is also well place at 1.24.
Today is going to be a tactical one with most expecting current leader Joris Wagemans
to find going too tough.
A seven man break is allowed clear before the first sprint prime.
Robby Meul Arthur Garcia Rincon Maher Hasnaoui Borislav Puric Aleksei Bauer Denis Kostjuk
and Jan Simek
are the seven.
These seven are joined by three more in Kevin Barclay Pawel Szaniawski
and Bart Veyt
Most of the riders are not too distant on GC with the order as follows:
Puric
Serbian Telecom
a 1.25
Barclay
Vodafone
a 1.28
Kostjuk
Metinvest
a 1.39
Garcia Rincon
Cativen
a 1.41
Meul
Samsung Mol
a 1.48
Veyt
AMEX
a 1.51
Bauer
Gazprom
a 1.53
Szaniawski
Tyskie
a 1.59
Simek
Skoda
a 2.12
Hasnaoui
AMEX
a 4.47
Delhaize lead the pack here with race leader Wagemans comfortable on this early climbing, you sense it will go quite deep into the day before the race leader will start to suffer. He may still possibly dream of a high GC placing.
As we wind down to the first sprint point disaster for AMEX as Veyt falls from the breakaway back to the pack as Garcia Rincon strengthens his GC position by nabbing the first sprint ahead of Kostjuk and Meul.
Just past the sprint point Peter Hatton Robert Retschke
and the enterprising AMEX squad send Matthew Crane
away from the pack.
All three are decent climbers and as the break sheds Simek, Bauer and Puric, they gain these three to make up nine riders following the steepest climb on the course. It is now Vodafone's Barclay who is virtual leader on the course:
Barclay
Vodafone
a 1.28
Kostjuk
Metinvest
a 1.35
Garcia Rincon
Cativen
a 1.35
Crane
AMEX
a 1.41
Meul
Samsung Mol
a 1.46
Hatton
EFTel
a 1.53
Bauer
Gazprom
a 1.53
Retschke
Eurovision
a 1.56
Szaniawski
Tyskie
a 1.59
Hasnaoui
AMEX
a 4.47
However the lead group falls back down to seven as sprinters Barclay and Szaniawski find themselves off the pace on the next climb.
With 50km to go the break have a 5.24 lead on a reduced pack of 60 riders. The pack still contains Wagemans and most of the favourites however Munoz Giraldo has been dropped meaning this really is not Tyskie's day at all.
At the second sprint Eurovision's Retschke strengthens his GC chances by taking it ahead of Meul and Crane meaning the lead sevens GC placings have altered slightly to this:
Kostjuk
Metinvest
a 1.35
Garcia Rincon
Cativen
a 1.35
Crane
AMEX
a 1.39
Meul
Samsung Mol
a 1.42
Retschke
Eurovision
a 1.50
Hatton
EFTel
a 1.53
Hasnaoui
AMEX
a 4.47
Delhaize are looking round for help and they are getting none, they have no urgency to catch the break but they do need to reduce the gap with 35km to go the gap is still hovering about five minutes.
The competition for the last sprint is fierce and Garcia Rincon leads Crane over with Kostjuk third.
This alters the GC picture slightly with this being the relative GC placings to Wagemans now:
Garcia Rincon
Cativen
a 1.29
Kostjuk
Metinvest
a 1.33
Crane
AMEX
a 1.35
Meul
Samsung Mol
a 1.42
Retschke
Eurovision
a 1.50
Hatton
EFTel
a 1.53
Hasnaoui
AMEX
a 4.47
It really is looking like the break will have their day has we have seen often in this division. Fortune really is favouring the brave in the group Retschke, Crane and Garcia Rincon begin to pull clear of the other three as we go over the final tough climbing section.
Meanwhile finally Wagemans is getting distanced on this section he and his Delhaize collegues are trying to stay in touch some four minutes behind the breaks battle.
The gap for Wagemans group is not insurmountable but with decent hilly riders like Manuel Ortega Carlos Alberto Ospina Ricardo Serrano
and Dieter Cappelle
ahead it cannot be closed down.
The lead three meanwhile are in the final straight and Crane is eager to distance Garcia Rincon before the final 1000m and does so.
He takes a fantastic stage and GC win finishing well ahead of Garcia Rincon and Retschke.
Those two will take second and third with Fabio Ciccarese
leading the punchaers into the finale as the hilly men cancel each other out.
Hatton leads the other four breakaways home over two minutes later, Kostjuk finishes on the same time as Hatton to take 4th on GC with Meul also here taking 5th, Hatton 6th. Hasnaoui having lost over four minutes before has to wait and see.
Indeed Ciccerese leads a group of 14 riders over the line timed at 4.11 to Crane. The best placed on GC out of these riders is Berkhout of UPC however he will only find himself on 7th on GC in the final reckoning.
Wagemans comes in timed at 5.05 with teammate Mertens, it means the young Belgian has managed to maintain a top ten on GC ahead of Het Nieuwsblad powerhouses Cappelle and Kusters.
