Carlos Verona may have taken his first career victory and Movistar’s first WorldTour win of the season, but it was Primoz Roglič who wrote the most essential story of Saturday’s mountain stage of the Criterium du Dauphiné, taking the lead of his teammate Wout Van Aert and putting time on his rivals.
10th season and Carlos Verona rewarded for his first career pro win. #Dauphine pic.twitter.com/urQVtCSUs3
— ammattipyöräily (@ammattipyoraily) June 11, 2022
You can follow the 74th Critérium du Dauphiné on FloBikes.
The lesson
Saturday’s 134.8 km course freed the beasts. Two HC category climbs dominated the day. First came the famous Col du Galibier, a 23 km climb at 5.1 percent. Then comes the Col de la Croix de Fer, 29 km at 5.2% with the last 6.7 km at 8.2%. Summit finish was on Cat. 2 Vaujany, 5.8 km of 7.2%.
Galibier and Croix de Fer today at #Dauphine.
That’s it, that’s the tweet. pic.twitter.com/AFF5YICOOO
— Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team (@qst_alphavinyl) June 11, 2022
It was a very scenic day in the French Alps.
👀⛰️👀#Dauphine 📸 @GettySport pic.twitter.com/ZBvXSQON2t
— Team Cofidis (@TeamCOFIDIS) June 11, 2022
After a few failed breakaways on Galibier, Pierre Rolland escaped and scored maximum King of the Mountain points at the top, cementing his lead in the competition. His move and several others coalesced into an 18-person breakaway heading for the Col de la Croix de Fer with a 2:00 advantage on the pitch.
Iron Cross Pass
Briton Mark Donovan of DSM pounced on his teammates. A few seconds behind, LL Sanchez (Spain / Bahrain-Victorious) took the virtual lead of the race. In the peloton, Jumbo-Visma got help from wildcard team Uno-X to close the gap. Donovan returned to the group of fugitives.
Groupama-FDJ has picked up the pace. From the breakaway, Gregor Mühlberger (Austria / Movistar) was the next to emerge, with Kenny Ellisonde in pursuit. Eventually, Mühlberger, Ellisonde, Rolland and two others formed a leading quintet. Ellisonde protested to his companions.
😂 Kenny has lost his temper. #Dauphine pic.twitter.com/kjeBbbZ2FL
— ammattipyöräily (@ammattipyoraily) June 11, 2022
With a few kilometers to climb, race leader and two-time stage winner Wout Van Aert appeared. Mattia Cattaneo, second, was next to go.
💛 The @MaillotjauneLCL is far ! 🇧🇪@WoutvanAert can’t keep pace with the favorites group.
💛 The Yellow Jersey has fallen! 🇧🇪@WoutvanAert can’t follow in the climb of the Col de la Croix de Fer. #Dauphine pic.twitter.com/y0rlBxopEH
— Criterium du Dauphiné (@dauphine) June 11, 2022
Rolland grabbed maximum KOM points.
End of Game
Twenty-nine kilometers remained. Ellisonde and Carlos Verona bounced away from the others on the descent from the Col de la Croix de Fer. They headed uphill with a 22-second lead over the closest pursuers. Verona instantly dropped Ellisonde.
Groupama-FDJ continued the work at the head of the peloton. Several attacks launched from the field. One of them was that of Jonas Vingaard, covered by Ben O’Connor, David Gaudu and Primož Roglič.
Roglič’s acceleration was powerful and unmatched. The Slovenian started stalking Verona, but he couldn’t catch up with the Spaniard. Vingaard placed third and is now 44 seconds behind Rogla in the GC. O’Connor is in last place on the podium.
Sunday’s conclusion to the Critérium du Dauphiné ends on another HC-rated climb, the mighty Plateau de Salaison.
2022 Criterium du Dauphiné Stage 7
1) Carlos Verona (Spain/Movistar) 3:53:35
2) Primoz Roglič (Slovenia/Jumbo-Visma) +0:13
3) Jonas Vingeard (Denmark/Jumbo-Visma) +0:25
CG Criterium du Dauphiné 2022
1) Primoz Roglič (Slovenia/Jumbo-Visma) 25:22:08
2) Jonas Vingeard (Denmark/Jumbo-Visma) +0:44
3) Ben O’Connor (Australia/AG2R-Citroën +1:24