Near the end of yesterday's Paris-Nice stage, many were surprised that John Degenkolb was taking turns on the front to bring back the late break. Despite having the chance to take back the yellow jersey, the German played a domestique role for teammate Reinardt Van Rensburg who sprinted to 6th.

Despite being in the front group at the finish, John Degenkolb was a domestique to Reinardt van Rensburg at today’s fifth Paris – Nice stage.

The riders just held off the charging bunch after a powerful attack within the last ten kilometres, and behind Van Rensburg crossed the line in a respectable sixth place. John Degenkolb kept a hold of his green jersey as leader of the point’s classification.

The stage win went to Carlos Betancur (AG2R) while the yellow jersey of overall leader stays on the shoulders of Geraint Thomas (Sky).

Coach, Christian Guiberteau said: “It was quite a nervous day today, being quite short and with some tough hills to get over. John, Reinardt and Dries Devenyns were in the front group over the top of the final climb and were looking good.

“We planned on riding for John but in the final 5km we changed the plan and John said he would lead Reinardt out. We couldn’t close the gap so he was sprinting for fourth. It is good for Reinardt’s confidence to get to sprint for himself and was a good opportunity for him to test himself.

“Tomorrow will be a tough day for everyone. Dries was feeling strong today and he is capable of doing something either in a break or going with some of the late attacks.”

After the stage, Van Rensburg said: “It was pretty tough out there today. We changed plan to ride for me towards the finish and John and Dries did a good job getting me into position. We were sprinting for fourth at the end but it was still a full-on sprint.

“I went a bit early but came over the line third in the bunch. It’s nice to test myself and to go full gas on the Giant – it feels really stiff and quick when you’re sprinting flat out. The next stages will be a bit tougher now so we will see how it goes.”

You can read our preview of stage 6 here and follow our live coverage of the stage at 14.25 CET on CyclingQuotes.com/live.