Martin secures seventh as Tour de France enters the mountains

UAE Team Emirates’ Dan Martin held his nerve on Stage 10 of the Tour de France to cross the line alongside his fellow General Classification (GC) contenders. Martin showed attacking intent on the stage and tried to break away from the chasing group with 10km to go, but was quickly reigned in on the descent of the Col de la Colombiere. Keen to limit the time gap, the Tour de France Stage six winner pushed up the final kick to secure a respectable seventh place.

The race was won by Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe (Quick-Step Floors) who broke away early and looked in full control as he crossed the line 01:34” in front of his nearest rival.

Commenting on the race, Dan Martin said: “It’s nice to get the first one out of the way. It’s always a bit nervous after the rest day. I’m pretty happy with that. It was a block head wind (on the final climb), every bone in my body said don’t attack. But I knew if guys were five or ten seconds off the back, by the time we reach the bottom it could be one minute. The next two days are going to be brutal and I’ll see how my legs are – but I expect a lot more attacks tomorrow.”

There will be little time for riders to recover as they look ahead to another tough day in the mountains and battle a 108.5km route from Albertville to La Rosiere. These parcours have already featured on this year’s UCI World Tour – as part of Stage six of the Critérium du Dauphine – so will be familiar to many of the riders. UAE Team Emirates’ Daniel Martin picked up a top five finish on that stage in June so will be hopeful of a strong performance as he hunts a second Tour de France stage victory.

Stage 10 Results:

1. Julian Alaphilippe (Fra) – Quick-Step Floors 4:25:27

2. Ion Izagirre (Spa) – Bahrain Merida Pro Cycling Team +01:34

3. Rein Taarame (Est) – Direct Energie +01:40

7. Dan Martin (Ire) – UAE Team Emirates +03:23

General Classification Standings:

1.Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) – BMC Racing Team 40:34:28

2. Geraint Thomas (GBr) – Team Sky +02:22

3. Alejandro Valverde (Spa) – Movistar Team +03:10

17. Dan Martin (Ire) – UAE Team Emirates +05:01