The Queen stage of the race! The first 80km is pretty much Stage 17's last 80km in reverse. Once again climbing the Galibier, but from the other side, before descending down to the Col du Telegraphe.
Next up is the Col de la Croix-de-Fer, followed by Alpe d'Huez. Normally, the stage ends here - but oh no, not today! Up the little used road to the Col des Sarennes we go, and down the mountain. Because why climb Alpe d'Huez once, when you can climb it twice!
The Alpe d'Huez last featured in 2010, where Bernhard Kohl took the victory ahead of Ruben Plaza and that year's Tour winner Markus Fothen. Popovych, Spilak, Kashechkin, Gadret and Dekker all also featured in the Top 10 that day.
More recently, this year's Dauphine Libere. Ruben Plaza won the stage, but of those racing here, the fastest climb came from Thomas Dekker - beating Spilak, Amador, Phinney, Kashechkin, and Taaramae.
Dekker will certainly hope to be beating Spilak again today, as the pair are currently locked together in a battle for 4th place in GC - along with the recent addition of breakaway star Ardila.
But perhaps, a strong ride could see him challenge the podium position of Pluchkin? Something special would surely be needed there, though.
And of course, the battle of the Maillot Jaune! Multiple Giro winner Damiano Cunego leads this year's Vuelta Champion Angel Madrazo by 1 minute and 55 seconds. If Madrazo can gain time today, he will make the upcoming time trial very interesting. But if Cunego shines, his Tour de France victory could be sealed today. No rider in management game history has won 2 different Grand Tours - that will likely change, but who will do it?
Also very much up for grabs: the King of the Mountains jersey and the Teams classification. Duret has led the KoM competition since Day 1, but leads Cunego by just 25 - leaving him vulnerable. UBS hold a roughly 3 minute lead on Wiggle as best team, but its far from certain that they can hold Wiggle off. Both teams determined for a classification victory in their first Tour de France.
On to the action. And we may have a long 200km+ stage, but that isnt going to stop attacks from the very start.
And it's Martijn Keizer! An earlier crash seemed to have hindered him a little over the race, but he is certainly motivated today.
Following him straight away are Geert Steurs, Maxime Bouet and yesterday's stage winner Peter Velits. Shouldnt Velits be exhausted after yesterday's efforts?
Also on the move early on are some other big climbers: Andrey Kashechkin and French National Champion John Gadret.
Also: Mathieu Sprick, Fabian Cancellara and Jose Antonoio Pecharroman.
Theyre going to need to push hard to stay away. Chasing on the front of the peloton are Ivars, Bibby, Medvedev, Valls and Marquez.
But the peloton's work in keeping them close just leads to more attackers. While Bret and Forero are being dropped off the back of the peloton (along with Bernaudeau), Milka decide to send a 2nd rider on the attack - their team leader Sergio Luis Henao Montoya! Johann Tschopp and Xavier Florencio also in the action.
Some strong climbers already involved, and time to add two more. Dan Martin has dissapointed a little in his debut Tour de France, more noted for his crashes than his climbing. But those crashes have not injured him, unlike former winner Markus Fothen. Both now attacking!
Yeison Delgado has also attacked - meanwhile 18 more riders have been dropped.
Amongst those in trouble, as the peloton reduces to less than 100 riders, is King of the Mountains leader Sebastien Duret. This is concerning for him - anybody dropped this early must surely have to fear the time limit later in the day.
Making up the breakaway group are:
M. Keizer
P. Velits
A. Kashechkin
J. Gadret
F. Cancellara
M. Sprick
JA. Pecharroman
SL. Henao Montoya
M. Fothen
D. Martin
Y. Delgado
But they are still in battle with the peloton, trying to stay clear.
Cancellara is dropped from this breakaway group - but it now looks like they are going to be allowed to go away. 12th, 14th, 15th, 17th, 19th, 21st and 26th overall are all in here, it's a risk to let them go - but the teams can't afford to burn all their helpers out at this early stage.
Delgado takes the summit of the Galibier first, ahead of Velits, Gadret, Martin and Keizer.
After yesterday aswell, Peter Velits is clearly a fan of the Galibier mountain. 14 King of the Mountain points here takes him up to 6th overall with 62. He could really get himself into a strong classification position today - and who knows, provide an extra threat to Duret's lead.
The gaps:
M. Keizer
JA. Pecharroman
P. Velits
SL. Henao Montoya
A. Kashechkin
M. Fothen
J. Gadret
D. Martin
M. Sprick
Y. Delgado
+ 1'56
F. Cancellara
+ 3'33
90 man Peloton
+ 5'55
Group Duret
29th overall Yannick Talabardon crashes out of the peloton on the descent. While Fabian Cancellara has really been left stuck in the middle. Perhaps Carmeuse should have sent team leader Rein Taaramae into the break? A lot of his nearest rivals on GC are in there.
The Col du Telegraphe is swiftly dealt with.
1
M. Fothen
2
SL. Henao Montoya
3
D. Martin
And with top descender John Gadret lending a hand, with help from another strong contender in Kashechkin, the breakaway group starts to build their lead on the way down the mountain.
Saint Jean de Maurienne is the site of the day's only intermediate sprint, and leading through it is the best placed rider in GC in the group. Henao Montoya.
6 free seconds is always nice, while Marquez and Fothen pick up the other points/seconds.
They have a 7 minute lead on the peloton as we reach the Col de la Croix de Fer. The peloton isnt really racing at the moment, and have grown to 117. Duret amongst others has made it back, while the Grupetto of 36 is already a further 9 minutes behind.
The break are working well together up front, and use the mountain to continue to push out their lead.
And as we dip under 100km to go, the lead has doubled. Closing in on 14 minutes - and Henao Montoya is soon to be the leader on the road!
And when the peloton reach 102km to go that gap is now over 15 and a half minutes, there is finally a response, but not from who you might expect!
Jack Wolfskin take demand with Chavanel, Florencio, Ten Dam and Zubeldia. The team known for their team time trials, are now at it once again - this time on a steep mountain.
It's as if the top GC riders arent willing to give an inch, and tire out their domestiques so early, if the team of their rivals isnt going to do the same. But also, as the teams classifications show - none of Cafe de Colombia, Santander, B&O, Warner Brothers and Spyker have really brought a strong climbing team to support their leader. They can't use that as an excuse though - Jack Wolfskin don't exactly have the strongest team either.
For Jack Wolfskin though, the priority is clear. Ardila worked hard yesterday to get himself in an unexpected high GC position, and they arent willing to allow the same to happen today for more riders - they will fight hard for at minimum, a top 10 GC place!
The break reach the summit.
1
A. Kashechkin
2
P. Velits
3
SL. Henao Montoya
4
Y. Delgado
5
D. Martin
Velits picks up 14 points, taking him to 76 - compared to Duret's 113 and Cunego's 88. He could have really used the extra 6 points for crossing first though, if he he is to really challenge the lead.
Chavanel leads the peloton over - with only 2 of the Jack Wolfskin 4 left after 7 kilometres on the front. The gap has only been reduced to 14 and a half minutes - but on the other hand, without Jack Wolfskin, it may have casually risen up to much higher by now.
Just 86 left in the peloton - infact, make that 85. 86th overall Pauwels has crashed.
Chavanel continues to lead the peloton - while Ten Dam and Florencio have gathered some energy to rejoin the battle.
The breakaway meanwhile, have reached Alpe d'Huez! The first hairpin of many, for them.
Fabian Cancellara's time trial training day comes to an end as he is finally caught by the peloton.
Jack Wolfskin are really excelling on the valley roads though - gap down to 11 and a half minutes.
And it is at 11'14 as Zubeldia leads the peloton onto the slopes of the climb.
And it's not long before Alpe d'Huez starts to make it's mark. Mathieu Sprick is the first to drop from the break.
Pecharroman follows him off the back, a couple of kilometres later
Meanwhile, the peloton is in need of some new pacemakers. Florencio's day is done, and Ten Dam is also falling away
Grivko and Hacecky take over, but the gap to the break is starting to grow again...
And it's clear to see why. The peloton is led by domestiques, the break is led by some very strong climbers. By 5km to the summit, even Martijn Keizer can no longer keep up
And by 1km to the summit, it's the turn of yesterday's stage winner Peter Velits. It was really too much to ask, 2 days in a row.
It's great news for Pendleton's Twicer as Velits will no longer be a threat to Duret in the King of the Mountains competition. Kashechkin tops the climb again - but the former Polkadots winner here only started the day with 2 points.
1
A. Kashechkin
2
SL. Henao Montoya
3
J. Gadret
4
D. Martin
5
M. Fothen
6
Y. Delgado
Climbing Alpe d'Huez is an exhausting effort, but there is no restbite at all.
It's straight onto the Col des Sarenne - and that's too much for Yeison Delgado. We are down to 5.
And now John Gadret and Dan Martin look in trouble. The summit is so close, they just need to cling on in there.
There's life in the peloton! The gap has slipped back to over 14 minutes, despite the peloton reducing in numbers - and perhaps an attack can really bring them into gear.
M. Samwel
F. Marquez
They are 1km from the summit of Alpe d'Huez, but the breakaway are now summiting Sarenne. Gadret and Martin have indeed been dropped!
1
A. Kashechkin
2
SL. Henao Montoya
3
M. Fothen
Kashechkin has been looking strong today, while Henao is still the virtual yellow jersey as it stands. But what of Fothen? He is in the perfect position to strike, but does he have the legs to do so?
The gap to Martin and Gadret is only 25 seconds - and with Gadret's descending skills, perhaps that can be closed before we start Huez for the 2nd time.
Meanwhile, Orozco leads the peloton over the summit of the Alpe d'Huez. The joys of Sarenne still to come for them.
Here are the gaps from the leaders to everyone, when they all do pass through the summit of Sarenne. We can see that once dropped from the break, there really has been no coming back for the riders.
But also, the peloton really need to get their act together. If not for Jack Wolfskin, they would probably be in excess of 20 minutes behind the break - and theyre still 16 minutes down. Fothen may not be a GC worry, but Kashechkin and particularly Henao certainly are!
Martin and Gadret were unable to close the gap in the descent, and are now 1'20 behind.
Henao's move doesnt work. Fothen and Kashechkin are back with him - but already the gap to Gadret and Martin is now up over 2 minutes.
The peloton are still descending, but there is a small uphill section during the descent and Amador uses it to attack.
Van der Hugenhaben tried to follow him, as he links up with teamate Marquez (and Samwel) and they start the climb - some 15 minutes after the leaders.
Valls takes to the front of the peloton. He will aim to bring Amador back, aswell as close the gap to the leaders and try to set up Madrazo for a move on Cunego - this needs to be a strong climb for Madrazo.
Into the final 10 kilometres, Henao Montoya attacks again!
Back to the peloton, and Valls could not last a kilometre. Cunego moves to the front, as an exhausted Pecharroman is caught.
Up front and all that attacking has come at a price - perhaps too eager at the possibility of moving right up in GC, especially having started the climb as virtual race leader, Henao has used up all his engines - game over!
This is the moment Fothen has been waiting for. He jumps on the pedals with glee, and Kashechkin really isnt looking good.
And there is the gap! Markus Fothen moves into a solo lead.
Behind him, it is a mountain of pain amongst his former breakaway companions. Dan Martin has dropped Gadret, in the battle for 4th.
Cunego is applying the pressure here and Pluchkin and Madrazo are both there with him. The rest need to be careful not to let a gap form though - while Amador is brought back.
And Fothen is extending his lead on Kashechkin
We have just over 10 kilometres to go in the peloton, and Keizer has now been caught. The TV cameras are focusing at the back though! 8th overall and former race leader, Yuri Trofimov is dropped!
Pluchkin takes over the pacesetting from Cunego, as they catch Velits. The group is down to 15 riders.
Trofimov has Samwel for company, but is already 90 seconds back.
Kashechkin seems unable to respond to Fothen. The gap well over a minute now.
Yeison Delgado is caught by the 14 man peloton.
A. Pluchkin
A. Madrazo
D. Cunego
A. Amador
F. Marquez
S. Spilak
T. Dekker
J. Popovych
T. Phinney
R. Úran
V. Karpets
D. Cataldo
M. Ardila
R. Taaramäe
But the group is reducing - Karpets, Cataldo, Taaramae and 4th overall Ardila are dislodged.
They dig deep and haul themselves back on terms though - while Trofimov is still there, fighting hard to limit his losses.
Ardila, Cataldo, Taaramae and Karpets' recovery was only brief. They are dropped aain, this time with Marquez.
And up front, Markus Fothen is really in trouble. Theres only a kilometre to go, but can Kashechkin do something here?
Cunego again hits the front of his group, and this time it is Phinney under pressure.
Markus Fothen wins the stage! The race all went wrong for him early on, but he has salvaged a stage victory in some style on Alpe d'Huez.
Phinney has fought back behind, while Kashechkin takes 2nd - finishing at 1'44 - could the Kazakh be moving into the Top 10 in GC?
Henao Montoya is another set to gain, he forces himself over the line for 3rd, 2'40 down.
2km down the road, and Phinney is struggling again - Amador attacks.
The whole group immediately dig deep to respond to the Costa Rican, as Gadret comes into view.
Gadret is caught as Pluchkin leads the pursuit of Amador. Every rider in this group is attacking except Cunego. Is the race leader in trouble?
Pluchkin passes Amador as he looks to power away
Cunego is fighting hard to respond - he doesnt want to let Madrazo gain anything - while Dan Martin has been swallowed up
Pluchkin takes 4th place from Madrazo, but right there is Cunego, he maintains his lead on Madrazo. The time gap to Fothen is 7'24. That's four and a half minutes behind Henao Montoya - so the Milka rider could be looking at moving to the bottom end of the Top 10.
Spilak takes 7th, from Amador, Dekker, Popovych and Uran - although small gaps are registered between some of them.
Martin must settle for 12th, agonisingly close to what would have been a great 4th place.
Gadret is next, just ahead of Phinney. The American has lost about a minute to the group infront and will certainly fall behind Henao and Kashechkin in GC.
Karpets and Taaramae finished about 50 seconds after Phinney. Aswell as losing a place to Kashechkin, Karpets also just falls below Gadret.
Another 50 seconds and Mauricio Ardila arrives. He has limit his losses as best as he could, and is still in the mix for the Top 10. Marquez finishes with him.
40 seconds later, Trofimov and Cataldo. Not a great day for the Russian, who will fall out of the Top 10, and in terms of the teams classification Cataldo will be dissapointed to have lost some time on Marquez.
Next in however, is Timofey Kritskiy. The 3rd Wiggle rider over the line, and now we must wait to see when the 3rd UBS rider will arrive.
Velits eventually ends 26th on the stage - interestingly just ahead of Delgado, despite having been dropped from the break before Delgado, and caught/dropped by the peloton before Delgado.
And theres actually 3 more Wiggle riders amongst the finishers before Zaugg arrives as the 3rd UBS rider. Its 9 minutes since Kritskiy finishes, so Wiggle will be taking over the teams classification lead.
Finishing over an hour down is Sebastien Duret. He looks set to secure the King of the Mountains classification now, as Cunego only picked up 6 points today.
But what happened to the 36 man Gruppetto that formed so early in the stage? Well, take one last look at them - they have been eliminated, for being outside the time limit. Quite a few sprinters are in here aswell.
G. Bagdonas
J. Ghyselinck
K. Vanoverschelde
M. Reckweg
S. Caethoven
JA. Baños Ballester
JE. Arango
A. Lavoine
G. Steurs
M. Bernaudeau
V. Reynès
P. Martens
JP. Forero
L. Bret
D. Vitoria
I. Lo Cicero
J. Fiedler
M. Schär
J. Guarnieri
L. Mondory
Y. Offredo
D. Impey
J. Giaux
M. Priamo
P. Merino Criado
D. Muravjev
M. Reihs
B. Swift
G. De Winde
JA. Flecha
A. Mironov
O. Avelino
L. Rowe
J. Casper
M. Goss
R. Cleaver
So, the stage went to Fothen, and it lifts him up to 19th in GC. Kashechkin is up to 10th and Henao Montoya up to 8th - just 1 second behind Uran - in a very close battle. Just 2 minutes separates 6th placed Amador and 11th placed Popovych. Ardila is also in this battle.
At the top, a bit of a lacklustre stage for Cunego and Madrazo. Nothing impressive from either of them, and Cunego must surely have the upper hand going into the time trial with a 1'55 lead - even if Madrazo should gain some time on him. Pluchkin looks fairly secure in 3rd, while just 9 seconds separates Dekker and Spilak.
