Wout van Aert has claimed his second stage win at Critérium du Dauphiné (2.UWT) and has now finished 1st or 2nd in four of the five stages so far. Today the Jumbo Visma rider was best in a sprint from a reduced peloton that only caught the breakaway men just before the finish line in Chaintré.
After celebrating too early on stage 3, only for David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) to pip him on the line, Van Aert lunged for the finish line today as Jordi Meeus (Bora-hansgrohe) pressed him all the way; the 23-year-old running the race leader very close in the end.
Ethan Hayter (Ineos Grenadiers) had to be content with 3rd place after his team and Jumbo Visma did all the work in the finale to reel in the dogged breakaway men.
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Those escapees were caught by the front of the bunch in the final 100 metres and included Fabien Doubey (TotalEnergies), Jan Bakelants (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert), Sebastian Schönberger (B&B Hotels-KTM) and Benjamin Thomas (Cofidis).
While Thomas launched his sprint from the breakaway very early in a bid to stay clear, Christophe Laporte did a huge last pull for Jumbo Visma on the front of the bunch. That turn ate into the small gap enjoyed by the breakaway men. Van Aert then came off Laporte's wheel to win.
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Laporte was sprinting or was in a full-gas seated effort from 500m to go. When he swung off, he got in Van Aert's way a little and just before the line the stage winner and Meeus appeared to bump shoulders. However, Van Aert showed incredible staying power with his sprint to hold on for victory, as the video below shows.
Ireland's Eddied Dunbar finished in the main bunch - whittled down by a late final climb. The Irishman, of Ineos Grenadiers, placed 26th and is still 25th overall, some 3:02 down on race leader Van Aert.
Tomorrow's stage 6 sees the riders take on 196.4k from Rives to Gap, which includes four climbs that should trim the bunch back rather than shred it.
