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2015 Tour de France Stage 4: Tony Martin triumphs on the day of cobbles to take yellow

Tony Martin (Germany/Etixx-QuickStep) won his fifth stage of the Tour de France on Tuesday's pavé day to slip on the yellow jersey.

July 7, 2015
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Tony Martin (Germany/Etixx-QuickStep) won his fifth stage of the Tour de France on Tuesday’s pavé day to slip on the yellow jersey. Chris Froome (Great Britain/Sky) didn’t lose time to his rivals and will be satisfied to not have to lead the race for too long. The cobbles created a selection, but didn’t have the dramatic decisiveness of last season’s edition, when Vincenzo Nibali (Italy/Astana) distanced his rivals on the way to victory.

Pierre Quemeneur (France/Europcar) apparently hadn’t had enough from his short Stage 2 breakaway, for he was in the day’s escape again along with three others. The quartet took a maximum gap of 8:00, with Thomas De Gendt (Belgium/Lotto-Soudal) taking the only categorized climb of the day. Astana and Sky did the work in the peloton to bring the fugitives back to 1:10 before the first section of cobbles at 121-km to go.

Except for a few flats–including one for the snakebitten Wilco Kelderman (The Netherlands/LottoNL-Jumbo)–nothing dramatic happened in the first 1800-metre section, though the breakaway’s lead dropped. The next cobbles were 72-km away, with the day’s intermediate sprint looming. Some of the GC men changed their bikes, the peloton slowed down, and the gap went up again.

The break had 2:30 on the main bunch by the time it rolled over the intermediate sprint in Havay, just before the race finally crossed into France. The sprint action back in the peloton, which Mark Cavendish (Great Britain/Etixx-QuickStep) won, brought the gulf down once again.

The six remaining sections of cobbles, all tougher than the first, were lumped together within 33-km, the last section of Carnières coming 10-km from the finish in Cambrai. Word spread through the peloton that rain would meet the field as it hit the cobbles. The fugitives looked relaxed, but the main bunch was very nervous.

The foursome hit the 1200-metre of Artres pavé with a 30-second lead. World champion Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland/Etixx-QuickStep) led the peloton onto the cobbles. The break was sopped up on the pavement before the next section of Quérénaing, with Cannondale-Garmin trying to sew up a split.

Astana mobbed the front on the Quérénaing and by the time the 1.6-km was over a select group of 45-50 had formed, one further whittled down in the fourth section. The fifth section of Saint-Python is where Nibali increased the pace, creating a split as the rain held off.

The penultimate section was the longest at 3.7-km. Thibaut Pinot (France/FDJ), already having a poor Tour, punctured and it took him a long time to get underway again. With 19-km to go, there was one only section left.

BMC led onto the Carnières, where Boom took over. Nibali strung things out with John Degenkolb (Germany/Giant-Alpecin) on his wheel. A group of nine with Nibali, Froome and Degenkolb emerged to hit the pavement, with Peter Sagan and his Tinkoff-Saxo squad bringing them back.

The 35-strong group heading towards the finishing line contained several sprinters and there was no urgency leading into the final kilometres. Martin attacked with just over 3-km to go and the leading group seemed indifferent, Sky not wanting to bear the yellow jersey for too long.

By the time the other riders decided to do something about Martin’s time trialing, it was too late. The Panzerwagen won riding teammate Matteo Trentin’s machine. Degenkolb was runner-up and Sagan third.

Ryder Hesjedal finished in a bunch 3:23 back.

Wednesday’s day is a sprinters’ classic from Arras to Amiens with no categorized climbs over 189.5-km. Will Cofidis finally put a rider in the day’s breakaway?

2015 Tour de France Stage 4
1) Tony Martin (Germany/Etixx-QuickStep) 5:28:58
2) John Degenkolb (Germany/Giant-Alpecin) +0:03
3) Peter Sagan (Slovakia/Tinkoff-Saxo) +0:03
77) Ryder Hesjedal (Canada/Cannondale-Garmin) +3:23
184) Svein Tuft (Canada/Orica-GreenEdge) +16:53

2015 Tour de France GC
1) Tony Martin (Germany/Etixx-QuickStep)
2) Chris Froome (Great Britain/Sky) +0:12
3) Tejay Van Garderen (USA/BMC) +0:25
46) Ryder Hesjedal (Canada/Cannondale-Garmin) +9:47
177) Svein Tuft (Canada/Orica-GreenEdge) +33:16