Cummings jumped away from the day’s breakaway and held off 2014 Tour champion Vincenzo Nibali on the Col d’Aspin, the first big climb this year, before descending safely to the Lac de Payolle to give his African-based team their fourth stage win of the year. However, disaster struck when the inflatable Vittel sponsored flamme rouge collapsed on Yates front wheel causing the British rider to go crashing to the ground.
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After losing more than three minutes to the main contenders in Friday’s first Pyrenean stage, Frenchman Thibaut Pinot attacked at the foothill of the mountain pass.
“The doctor is checking him up, his shoulder is aching”.
Next order: Stage 8 on Saturday is a much more challenging 184-kilometer (114-mile) leg from Pau to Bagneres-de-Luchon featuring four serious climbs, beginning with the Col du Tourmalet, which is so hard it’s labeled “beyond classification”. “I wasn’t confident in that group with [climbers] Nibali and Navarro”, Cummings said. “It was just one of those unexpected things, I guess”.
The Team Sky rider and defending champion mounted a sensational descent of Col de Peyresourde to leave his rivals in his wake, the Briton moving 16 seconds clear at the top courtesy of a time-bonus boost.
I had bad legs, its as simple as that, said Pinot, whose struggles in the Category 1 ascent were in stark contrast to his scintillating form a year earlier on his way to a prestigious win on the slopes of the Alpe dHuez. “The Tour is the Tour, it’s special”, said Cummings.
“Tejay (van Garderen) and I were told on the radio to pull together and try and bring Froome back as much as we could”.
The Briton broke clear with 15km to go to seal the second Tour de France stage victory of his career, following his triumph in stage 14 at Mende previous year.
As it was, the race jury’s ruling means his effort was not in vain, with the revised GC also seeing Greg van Avermaet’s lead in the yellow jersey back down to less than six minutes.
That decision came too late for Yates to be presented with the jersey on the podium on Friday, but organisers did their best to make up for it.
Crouched over his handlebars for extra aerodynamics, he opened a 20-second lead and used his time trial qualities to resist the chase, posting a sixth career stage win on the Tour.
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Van Avermaet was able to extend his overall lead in part to the fact that an inflatable arch one kilometer from the finish line deflated after stage leaders had passed under it.
