Some call it flat. The like of Cavendish and Ulanowski might disagree.
The first four attackers were allowed to go away. They are: Jiatz, Benito, Dyrnes and Bernas.
Dyrnes takes the first intermediate ahead of Bernas and Benito.
With 100 km to go the gap is 7'10
75 km and 5'39
Plenty of teams helping in the chase makes a bunch sprint look very likely. Eddie Stobart seems to still have faith in Cavendish.
50 km and 2'47 Öste-Macdonald had a puncure and is now left struggling on his own far behind the peloton.
25 km and 1'32
Dyrnes takes the 2nd intermediate ahead of Bernas and Jiatz.
And the same happens at the 3rd intermediate with 12,3 km to the finish line.
The gap is now exactly one minute. Valls crashed on the descent after the 2nd intermediate and is looking like he will loose quite a bit of time today. Dyball pulls so hard that Metinvest has to really invest something to avoid a gap appearing behind him. The break looks doomed.
With 5 km to the line the break is reeled in and it's time to set up the bunch sprint with all the big sprinters still in the peloton.
Eddie Stobart, Metinvest and Kärcher all tried setting up a sprint train but when Gerdemann took his turn for the German outift no one could follow. With 2,5 km to go it's Eichler Silvestre Haussler Docker Santos Kreder Nepomnyachsniy Gatto
Everyone else seems to far behind to challenge for the win today.
Final km
500 m
Haussler probably went a bit late sitting comfortably on his train while Docker looks like he found just the right time to leave the slipstream. Cavendish also coming fast from behind. Good on him as many had counted him out - a bit better placing next time and he seems to be fit enough to do something. Grosu also making an appearance now with a very strong last 500 m.
No one can challenge Dockers win though.
Haussler takes 2nd while Grosu rounds off the podium after an amazing sprint coming from far behind.
Boily defends yellow by sprinting to 10th place. The top GC is largely unaffected apart from Valls losing 7 minutes today.
Volta a Portugal - Stage 3 
