Romain Bardet was one of the winners in today's dramatic final stage of the Criterium du Dauphiné when excellent Ag2r teamwork was finished off by their captain who took second on the stage and moved into fifth overall. With Andrew Talansky and Jurgen Van Den Broeck being the big winners as they finished on the podium, the Frenchman was convinced that his team had deserved the prize more than the Lotto and Garmin teams.

Romain Bardet has never been afraid of attacking and today he played a main role in the very dramatic final stage of the Criterium du Dauphiné that turned the GC upside down. With teammates Jean-Christophe Peraud and Alexis Gougeard, he made it into the strong 23-rider group that put Alberto Contador and Chris Froome under pressure.

With Bardet sitting in seventh overall, Peraud and Gougeard sacrificed themselves completely to set up their teammate for a stage win and a jump up the overall standings. It was mission accomplished as Bardet moved into fifth and he got close to the victory by taking second on the stage.

The big winners were Andrew Talansky and Jurgen Van Den Broeck as the former took the overall victory and the latter moved onto the podium. Both had teammates in the break but Bardet regretted that they had not done the same amount of work as his two teammates.

“This Critérium du Dauphiné ends well," he said. "I really thank all my teammates without whom nothing would have been possible. They have done a great job throughout the week.

"Alexis Gougeard, neo-professional , provided a huge work. I saw many young riders able to do great performances but they are not many with a talent like him. He is a future champion.

"And then, there was Jean-Christophe (Péraud), a great rider who gave everything he could today. He set a crazy pace on all climbs. If he is worried about his feelings, I can tell you that he is in a good shape and it bodes well for the Tour de France.

"I would really have liked to win this stage to offer it to my teammates after the work they have done for me. Unfortunately, Nieve won, that’s sport. His leaders were behind him and he didn't need to work in the breakaway.

"Our team made its presence felt in the race, more than Lotto and Garmin even though I was not the rider in the best position overall. We rode as a big team and it’s a huge source of pride for us.”