"For sure Porte can climb faster than me but for Sunday I'm not so sure about the others."

Those were the words of Jakob Fuglsang after stage seven at Paris-Nice.

Fuglsang finished fourth on a rainy day in the Maritime Alps, 32 seconds behind stage winner and new race leader Tony Gallopin of France.

Teammates Rein Taaramäe and Lars Boom started the action early, and escaped into a large breakaway in the first hour of racing to take the pressure off of Fuglsang.

On the fifth of six categorized climbs above Nice, Boom and Fuglsang worked into a leading group of riders before the two final descents, and on the last downhill into the Mediterranean coast the Danish rider was alone in an elite group of riders.

The former U23 World Champion mountain biker used his strong technical skills to ride safely down the slippery switchbacks while some of his competitors lost control and slid on the wet asphalt, including former race leader Richie Porte of Australia.

Fuglsang is now in tied for fourth place in the General Classification with an uphill individual time trial in stage eight that will decide the final podium.

Fuglsang sits 38 seconds behind Gallopin and just two seconds behind second-place Porte ahead of the final stage.