Etixx - Quick-Step rider Tony Martin decided to test the peloton a bit at the end of 172km Paris-Nice Stage 1 on Tuesday, attacking with about 9 and a half kilometers left in the stage after the race looked to be heading toward a bunch arrival.

Geraint Thomas (Team Sky), Lars Boom (Astana), and eventually also Matti Breschel (Tinkoff-Saxo) bridged to Martin, but Breschel suffered a mechanical and the other three were caught with 1.5km remaining.

Michal Kwiatkowski, in yellow since he won the prologue, kept himself in good position thanks to support from his teammates the entire race. He finished 17th, top finisher for Etixx - Quick-Step, which means he will be in yellow also at the start of Stage 3 on Wednesday. He is still the best young rider as well, but due to bonifications and the sprint finish Alexander Kristoff (Katusha) takes over as the points leader.

Andre Greipel (Lotto Soudal) won the bunch sprint, with Arnaud Demare (FDJ) 2nd and John Degenkolb (Giant-Alpecin) finished 3rd.

Etixx - Quick-Step looks next to 179km Stage 3, which includes two sprint sections and three Category 3 climbs in the middle of the stage. The finish is slightly uphill.

"I hope it goes a little bit faster tomorrow," Kwiatkowski said. "It will depend on the wind. There are a lot of sprinters behind me and we could see more action. It was a bit of a surprise to keep it today, I saw there are several riders who wook seconds in the sprints, they look strong and motivated but my team protected me well. 

"It was a long day, with a man alone in the front, and then it got very nervous towards the end. We went for the stage win with Tony Martin but it unfortunately didn't work out. You never know what to expect with Tony. Sometimes, five seconds is enough for him to keep the bunch at bay. 

"It's hard for Tom [Boonen] to have to miss his favourite classics. But he's still the captain and the spirit of our team and I'm sure he will come back for other objectives later in the season."