Greig Leach

With the five man break away still up the road, the intermediate sprint in Gernika-Lumo was for sixth place. But, the race for the Maillot Vert is all about earning points everyday, not just winning stages. So is was Mads Pedersen in the new colors of Lidl-Trek out sprinting a resurgent Peter Sagan (TotalEnergies) with Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) just on the wheel of the retiring Sagan. With the larger share of points already gone, and even more to be awarded at the finish, Pedersen was not destined for the sprinter's jersey today. But with two more lumpy days to go before the flat stages he may yet have a chance to wear green.