French professional cyclist Alexis Vuillermoz has won the second stage of the Tour of the Dauphine in France, taking over the overall standings at the traditional dress rehearsal for the Tour de France.
After a demanding 169.8 km from Saint-Peray to Brives-Charensac, the 34-year-old from Team TotalEnergies prevailed in the sprint of a five-man lead group.
Belgian top star Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma), who won Sunday’s opener, won the peloton’s sprint five seconds behind the front group, but still lost the overall lead to Vuillermoz.
The best German was Nils Politt (Bora-hansgrohe) in 15th place. Stage three ends on Tuesday after 169 km with a short final climb in Chastreix-Sancy.
Primoz Roglic and Co. at the start
Many top riders use the mountainous Dauphine over eight stages as a test run on the Tour of France, which begins on July 1 in Copenhagen.
Among others, the three-time Vuelta winner Primoz Roglic (Slovenia) and last year’s Tour runner-up Jonas Vingegaard (Denmark/both Jumbo-Visma) are at the start.
Tour winner Tadej Pogacar (Slovenia/UAE Team Emirates), on the other hand, will drive the tour of his home country from June 15th.