Greg Van Avermaet again got close to a stage victory when he finished third in the hard stage 9 of the Tour de France. Having been up against an incredible Tony Martin, the Belgian admitted that the stage winner was pretty unbeatable.

BMC Racing Team's Greg Van Avermaet finished third at the Tour de France Sunday as a solo breakaway won the day and the overall lead changed hands. After being led out for the sprint by teammate Amaël Moinard, Van Avermaet was pipped at the line by runner-up Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing) at the end of the 170-kilometer race. The three were part of a group of 20 riders who arrived 2:45 after stage winner Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-Quick Step).

"Amaël did great work for me in the sprint," Van Avermaet said. "Martin was a little bit unbeatable today – it was hard to chase him back. I think this was the maximum result we could get out of it. I am happy with the result."

It was Van Avermaet's third top 10 finish of the race, adding to a Stage 2 runner-up placing in Sheffield and a 10th place on Stage 6.

Tony Gallopin (Lotto-Belisol) assumed the overall lead from Vincenzo Nibali (Astana Pro Team) after finishing in the group chasing Martin. Nibali and the peloton containing BMC Racing Team leader Tejay van Garderen arrived 7:46 after Martin. Van Garderen finished 45th and is now 16th overall, 5:08 behind, as the top of the overall standings shuffled.

"The terrain made it hard but it was probably the most relaxed day," van Garderen said. "The morale is still high and the legs are still good. I am missing a little bit of skin, but I think a lot of people are. We are looking forward to moving up on GC and fighting for the next two weeks."

Monday's 161.5 km stage is the last before the race enjoys the first of two rest days.