Sixteen seconds is not a huge margin but I’ll take every second I can at this point.
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The 31-year-old Brit, who is vying for his third victory in the elite race, ended the stage 13 seconds ahead of his competitors following a dynamic attack.
“It wasn’t really planned”, he said of that bold move.
“I will spare you the details but let’s just say you could see it was necessary hahaha!”
The British cyclist used an unorthodox riding technique on the descent, squatting over the crossbar for aerodynamic purposes as many riders have done over the years but also pedalling from the position.
The worst case scenario for Froome’s rivals is if he has teammate support on the last climb with the Team Sky juggernaut capable of putting everyone in difficulty.
“I was cooking on that climb and I thought Vincenzo would come back”, Cummings said.
Chris Froome has been caught on camera appearing to punch a supporter before going on to secure victory at stage eight of the Tour de France.
Greg Van Avermaet started the day with an nearly six minute lead but finished the stage a shade under 26min after Froome.
Apart from Bardet, French hopes took a battering with Thibaut Pinot (FDJ) and Pierre Rolland (Cannondale) losing time; but the highest-profile rider who had a torrid day’s racing in 36-degree Celsius (about 97-degrees Fahrenheit) heat was Alberto Contador (Tinkoff), 17th at 1:41 and now 20th overall at 3:12.
As Movistar’s Nairo Quintana reached to grab a water bottle at the summit, Froome burst clear and he showed he was willing to take risks on the 16km descent to the line.
Yesterday was the first real mountain stage of the Tour and it was expected to shake up the GC, but nobody expected the manner in which Froome and co launched their attack; if the attack was spontaneous as Froome said after the stage; his descending style was certainly not.
“I had no time to react”, Yates said after getting his chin stitched up. “He went down, got away from us, and took some seconds on all of us”.
TEAM TRIUMPH: Bathurst’s Mark Renshaw (left) rides alongside team mate Mark Cavendish during stage seven of the Tour de France.
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Froome’s Pinarello bike had a 54-tooth oval chainring and he used the big gear to storm down the descent, spinning the pedals as he stayed tucked over his bike. Speaking before the Froome incident, he told the Sunday Telegraph: “I don’t want to overstate it but ultimately we have a unique sport; it is a privilege to be able to get up close to the race and to the event”.
