Luke Durbridge holds his lead after the peloton shatters on a hilly finishing circuit
Francisco Ventoso (Movistar) took his first victory of the season in stage four of the Circuit de la Sarth-Pays de la Loire, between Angers and Pré-en-Pail. After a series of near-misses this season, the Spanish sprinter was finally able to raise his arms in victory as he crossed the line ahead of Jure Kocjan (Team Type 1-Sanofi) and Samuel Dumoulin (Cofidis).
Luke Durbridge (GreenEdge), who took over the race lead in the previous day’s time trial, retains his jersey after finishing in the front part of a fragmenting peloton.
“They say that the more difficult a victory is to be notched up, the better it tastes, and that's why I'm so happy, because I suffered really much today," said an elated Ventoso. “The final circuit was really demanding and the group was getting smaller and smaller in every lap. At the last one I struggled to keep the pace as almost all sprinters have been left behind, but I made it.
“The team was crucial for that, because a 15-rider group went apart in the first lap and my team-mates worked for me,” he explained. “If [Jonathan] Castroviejo and [Ignatas] Konovalovas hadn't been there, the group would have stayed away. At the sprint, [RadioShack-Nissan’s Nelson] Oliveira jumped from behind and had a little gap, but there was strong headwind and I waited for the appropriate moment and win with some distance.
“It's true I really needed it because, while in 2011 everything went easy in the first months, this year it was quite the opposite, and for one thing or another I didn't find a victory,” Ventoso continued. “I did not lose confidence in my chances thanks to the team, because they gave me the tranquility I needed in those bad moments. That's why I dedicate this victory to them, from the corporation's CEO to the last of the team staff members.
“I took a lot of time back today and I'm getting closer in the GC,” he added. “There will be bonus seconds at stake tomorrow and a sprint finish is expected, so we have to keep fighting until the end. This is the best way to come to the stop before the Giro.
“I knew I was doing things right, but victories are always needed.”
After the first attack from five riders was immediately pulled back, Romain Matheou (Véranda Rideau-Super U) and Jonathan Thire (BigMat-Auber 93) escaped the peloton after just three kilometres. The two Frenchmen were allowed to steadily build a lead over the peloton and, as Matheou led Thire over the first “Point Chaud” sprint, in Epineux-le-Seguin after 54.4km, they were 4’40” ahead.
The gap continued to grow and, as Matheou took the second sprint in Sainte-Suzanne after 72.3km, it was up to 6’15”; this was as high as it was to get however, and as they headed towards the hilly finishing circuit it began to fall steadily.
Having climbed the Mont des Avaloirs for the first time, the two escapees crossed the finish line, with the five 8.6km finishing circuits to go, they were still five minutes clear. Activity at the front of the peloton would soon see this come down however.
As the peloton hit the Mont des Avaloirs for the third time, a group of 15 riders detached itself from the front. Included in this new breakaway were Pierre Rolland (Europcar), Pavel Brutt (Katusha), Julian El Fares (Team Type 1-Sanofi), Ben Hermans (RadioShack-Nissan), Sébastien Roseler (Garmin-Barracuda) and Manuele Boaro (Saxo Bank), as they crossed the finish line with two laps to go, they were 2’45” behind the two leaders. More significantly though, the group was 40 seconds clear of the peloton, putting Boaro - who started the day just eight seconds behind Durbridge - in the virtual lead.
Steadily though, the peloton reeled the 15 escapers in; at the penultimate crossing of the line the gap was just 28 seconds, and it was finally closed as they hit the climb once more.
The activity in the peloton had drastically cut the gap to the two leaders and, as it dropped to 35 seconds, Matheou went off alone.
The counterattacks began again however, with Thomas Voeckler (Europcar) and Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Nissan) jumping away from the peloton on the Mont des Avaloirs. The two of them soon made contact with Matheou, and were quickly joined by Brutt and Johannes Fröhlinger (Argos-Shimano).
The group of five was quickly hunted down, but the fierce pace on the hilly circuit split the peloton reducing it to less than 40 riders as the final lap began. Andrew Talansky (Garmin-Barracuda) made a solo break for glory with just three kilometres to go, again chased by Brutt, but the two riders were captured before the finish and Ventoso was the fastest of the remaining sprinters.