Eddie Dunbar went on the attack on the final stage at Critérium du Dauphiné today but was left empty-handed when the general classification battle ensured the breakaway was kept well under control.
Dunbar and Laurens De Plus were both in the breakaway for Ineos Grenadiers. The Dutchman rode for his Irish team mate on the final climb. However, when the breakaway split, Dunbar lacked a little, with Michael Storer (Groupama-FDJ), George Bennett (UAE Team Emirates) and Jan Hirt (Intermarché-Wanty Gobert Matériaux) riding away from him.
For Dunbar, it was a disappointing weekend as he was dropped with 35km to go on yesterday's penultimate stage and he never really threatened today, despite getting a chance to go up the road.
That move he was in was sparked by a Pierre Rolland (B&B Hotels-KTM) attack on the early Col de Plainpalais. He was eventually joined by 12 others, including Dunbar and De Plus.
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Also in that move were: Simon Geschke (Cofidis), Gorka Izagirre (Movistar), Alexis Vuillermoz (TotalEnergies), Franck Bonnamour (B&B Hotels-KTM), Matteo Fabbro (Bora-hansgrohë), Bruno Armirail and Michael Storer (Groupama-FDJ), George Bennett (UAE Team Emirates), Antonio Tiberi, Kenny Elissonde and Antwan Tolhoek (Trek-Segafredo) and Jan Hirt (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert).
As the breakaway raced onto and over the Col de Plainpalais, followed by the Col de Leschaux, their efforts to build a potentially stage-winning gap were ominously coming up short. Back in the bunch, Jumbo Visma were setting the pace and were clearly keen to keep the gap at around two minutes, which was never going to be enough for the breakaway.
When the leaders hit the HC Col de la Colombière, for the 11.5km ascent, the breakaway soon blew apart as Groupama-FDJ put Armirail on the front and he added almost another minute to the gap, to bring it back well over two minutes again.
Under the pressure of his work, six riders dropped the rest of the breakaway men. Dunbar was in that stronger front group along with Armirail, Storer, Bennet and Elissonde. However, Armirail eventually rode himself into the ground and when he did, the impetus went out of the lead group. The gap back to the thinning peloton dropped back down to 1:30 while De Plus and Hirt managed to get back onto the Dunbar group.
De Plus then rode on the front down the climb and in the valley in the hopes of holding the gap large enough to give Dunbar a fighting chance of going for the stage win up the final climb. But when the leaders reached the foot of the 11.4km Plateau de Solaison - for the finale to the finish line - the gap was just one minute back to what was left of the peloton.
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De Plus then paid for his efforts and fell away up front before Hirt, a stage winner at the Giro, pushed on. He was joined by Storer and Bennett, though Dunbar was unable to follow and he eventually finished in 30th place, some 6:37 down on the stage winner. As Dunbar was distanced, just behind him the peloton became a select group under the pressure set by Jumbo Visma.
And while George Bennett was the last of the breakaway me to survive out front, even he was caught and passed with 6.5km to go. Just a little further up the road, Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo Visma) attacked with only team mate and yellow jersey Primož Roglič able to follow, along with Ben O'Connor (AG2R Citroën); though the latter soon slipped away.
Roglič and Vingegaard, then rode up the remains of the climb to take a 1-2 on the stage and in the overall. Vingegaard took the stage victory, side-by-side with Roglič in a double celebration. The order of the top two was reversed in the final GC; Roglič adding Critérium du Dauphiné victory to his win in Paris-Nice during the spring.
O'Connor put in a spirited performance behind the two leaders and the AG2R Citroën rider looked like he might catch them in the last few kilometres. At that point, with O'Connor definitely closing the gap as he chased on his own, Vingegaard upped the pace at the head of the race with yellow jersey Roglič on his wheel.
However, as the Dane pressed on - and looked like he could go much faster - Roglič was distanced a little. Vingegaard spotted the gap opening behind him and quickly eased off the pedals, allowing Roglič back up to him. The gap that opened was small and the incident was all over in seconds.
However, if Jumbo Visma is to take on Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) at the Tour de France next month, they will need to try and work him over, if they can, using both Roglič and Vingegaard. And on the basis of the evidence today - though Roglič is coming back from a knee injury and building form - Vingegaard may be the man best able to take it to Pogačar on the biggest mountain stages.
In the end today, O'Connor finished 3rd on the final stage at 15 seconds with Esteban Chaves (EF Education-EasyPosr) 4th at 53 seconds alongside team mate Ruben Guerreiro, Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious), Louis Meintjes (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux) and Jack Haig (Bahrain Victorious).
Roglič ran out the overall winner by 40 seconds from Vingegaard while O'Connor was 3rd at 1:41. Jumbo Visma also won the points classification, and collected two stages, with Wout Van Aert. Rolland won the climbers' classification and Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Pro Cycling Team) won the young rider classification; the 22-year-old placing 10th on GC. Dunbar was 30th overall.
