Key Takeaways: Critérium du Dauphiné Stage 4-6

Breaking down how two very different, but key stages, has given shape to the GC standings before the race heads into the high mountains

After two key set pieces, an individual time trial and difficult summit finish, the General Classification is finally coming into focus at the eight-stage Critérium du Dauphiné, with Primož Roglič proving he is getting back to his best right in time for the Tour de France by taking the overall race lead from Remco Evenepoel, who continued to struggle with streaky climbing performances on the steep slopes of Le Collet d'Allevard on Friday’s opening mountain stage. With two major mountain stages still looming over the weekend, theoretically, anything could still happen, but challenging Roglič’s lead will be incredibly difficult, if not impossible, due to his current high level of form, presence of a strong Bora-Hansgrohe support team, and a group of riders behind who would be happy to finish on the podium.

Catch up on the biggest highlights and key takeaways from Stages 4-6 below:

Current GC Top Five
1) Primož Roglič (BORA-hansgrohe) +0
2) Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) +19
3) Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-LAB) +58
4) Derek Gee (Israel-Premier Tech) +1’01
5) Aleksandr Vlasov (BORA-hansgrohe) +1’32

Stage 4-6 Notebook

Stage 4
Remco Evenepoel:
Third Segment (10km-Finish): After going through the opening two time checks slightly ahead of, and then slightly behind, early leader Josh Tarling, Evenepoel settles into an extremely powerful and efficient rhythm on the uphill drag to the finish line in the last ten kilometers.

Finish: After demonstrating his superior climbing skills, Evenepoel crossed the line 17 seconds ahead of Tarling, which means he put 19 seconds into him in just the final ten kilometers.

Primož Roglič
Second Segment (24.5km-10km): After what appeared to be a disappointing performance on the opening flat kilometers, where he lost 30 seconds to Evenepoel, Roglič shows that he has paced his effort well as he flies through the uphill sectors in the second half of the race.

Finish: He crosses the finish line 39 seconds behind Evenepoel, but with the second fastest time in the difficult final ten kilometers, losing just nine seconds to Evenepoel through it.

Stage Top Five
1) Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) +0
2) Joshua Tarling (Ineos) +17
3) Primož Roglič (BORA-hansgrohe) +39
4) Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-LAB) +1’07
5) Oier Lazkano (Movistar) +1’21

Stage 5
Stage canceled after a massive crash with 18km-to-go that brought down, but didn’t seriously injure Primož Roglič and Remco Evenepoel while taking outside GC contender Juan Ayuso out of the race and leaving Visma-LAB down two key Tour de France domestiques with Dylan van Baarle and Steven Kruijswijk suffering broken bones.

Stage 6
10.5km-to-go: At the base of the difficult final climb (9% average gradient), Ineos, Bora, and Visma both have their team leaders at the front with plenty of team support, while Remco Evenepoel is sitting unusually far down in the group.

6.2km: Evenepoel eventually invests energy he could have saved with better positioning by moving up toward the front, but he can already see that he looks under pressure, while Roglič, on his wheel, looks comfortable to the point of being bored.

4.1km: Ineos employs a creative tactical plan by having outside GC contender Laurens De Plus attack to put pressure on the others instead of just setting a steady pace on the front. He is followed by Aleksandr Vlasov, who is also an outside GC contender and allows Bora and Roglič to sit back.

3.4km-3.1km: After realizing the stage is riding up the road, Giulio Ciccone attacks to bridge up to Vlasov and De Plus, while Roglič sits closely on his wheel and Matteo Jorgenson leads a chase group closely behind. Meanwhile, Evenepoel is dropped from the GC group.

1.9km-1.2km: As the Derek Gee-led GC chase group nearly catches Vlasov and De Plus at the front, Evenepoel is struggling behind on the steeper gradients.

500m: After being caught, Vlasov does a great job of pacing Roglič clear from the rest of the contenders, with Ciccone the only rider capable of holding the wheel. Further back, Evenepoel appears to re-find his legs and increase his pace.

200m: With Ciccone on his wheel, Roglič winds up his sprint and immediately opens a gap.

Finish: Looking back to near his best, Roglič continues to pile on the power and cross the finish line with a comfortable margin over Ciccone and 42 seconds on Evenepoel, meaning he takes the GC lead by 19 seconds. Vlasov holds on for third, while Derek Gee puts in a great performance to finish fourth on the stage, with Matteo Jorgenson in fifth.

Stage Top Five
1) Primož Roglič (BORA-hansgrohe) +0
2) Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) +3
3) Aleksandr Vlasov (BORA-hansgrohe) +11
4) Derek Gee (Israel-Premier Tech) +13
5) Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-LAB) +17

Key Takeaways

1) Where the GC Stands After the First Major Mountain Test: While we might still be weeks away from the start of the Tour de France, the alpine setting of a difficult stage and the presence of a large majority of Tour domestiques and GC leaders, today’s stage (like tomorrow’s and Sunday’s will), told us a lot about what to expect in July.