Bakelants holds off charging Sagan as other fast men fall away

Today was never likely to be one for the sprinters but it is a testament to the all round ability of Green jersey hopeful Peter Sagan that he was able to stay with the front group and come within two bike lengths of taking the stage win. Unfortunately for him the one remaining man of a late breakaway, Jan Bakelants, was able to survive and take the win with a gap just big enough to ensure a one second split to the rest and with it the Yellow jersey.

Actually, with Marcel Kittel -- the Yellow jersey for the stage -- well down the road, the race for the line on this one had that extra incentive of being for the Yellow jersey because every single rider the day before had been awarded the same time as the stage winner. By putting a second into everyone else Bakelants could take the jersey as the sole leader on time.

There was some tricky climbs on the stage and it wasn't long before the bigger boned sprinters began to slide out the back of a fast moving peloton. There were attacks throughout the day as plenty had the scent of Yellow in their nostrils and it really hurt those who didn't fancy the lumpy roads. The Autobus that included the likes of Kittel and Mark Cavendish came in over 17 minutes down -- and this wasn't a high mountains stage. Also into that Grupetto was the surprising face of Thomas De Gendt who finished third in the 2012 Giro and who was expected to be a solid competitor in the mountains this year. Is he riding injured? One man who is hurt is Tony Martin. He was badly injured in a crash yesterday but is soldiering on clearly in the hopes of recovering in time for the first individual time-trial where he is a favorite to win.

Bakelants resembled the fox sprinting for its life while being hunted down by a pack of wild dogs. A pack numbering 92 riders which means he goes into tomorrow's stage with the haunting knowledge that those 92 riders are all within a single second of his jersey. That the stage is another lumpy one up the east coast of Corsica should prove a challenge. Will that old theory that the Yellow jersey gives you that extra strength hold true and allow for Bakelants to stick with the front group? Knowing how close they are to Yellow you have to think there are dozens of men licking their chops at the opportunity of sticking just a single second into the group in order to realise a life-times dream.