Nacer Bouhanni (Cofidis) again proved that he is clearly the fastest rider in the Criterium du Dauphiné when he powered clear to take his second stage victory in the French race. After a hugely aggressive finale where even the GC riders went on the attack, the Frenchman was unbeatable in the reduced sprint that decided the stage, easily holding off Jonas Van Genechten (IAM) and Luka Mezgec (Giant-Alpecin) to extend his lead in the points competition.

"It was really hard," he said. "It became very complicated at the end, because of the attacks in the last hill. Without Julien Simon, it would have been impossible for me to win today because Tony Gallopin wouldn't have been caught. We brought him back thanks to Julien.

"It was a long day. We rode for more than six hours. Since the start of the Critérium du Dauphiné, the Cofidis team was worked every day. Only the team time trial was quieter for us. Today all the leaders wanted to be in front in the finale and it made it nervous.

"Now we'll enter the second phase of the race, which is mountainous. Our leader is Dani Navarro. I'll work on my pedaling style in the hills and continue my preparation for the Tour de France, which is going well so far.

"I'm happy because I've had five or six second places since the beginning of the season, now it's my fifth win. I hope I'll keep going this way.