Critérium du Dauphiné
Stage 3: Le Puy-en-Velay to Riom
Historical Note
The actual race took place on 11 June 2019. The stage was 172 km (106.9 miles) and was won by Irish rider Sam Bennett of Team Bora–Hansgrohe in a time of 4 hours 15 minutes and 25 seconds.
Left: Schematic plan of the stage created using the Flamme Rouge Companion App designed by Benoit Gourdin.
Above: Flamme Rouge track tile layout. Tabletop area is 120 cm (47 in) x 72 cm (28 in), approximately.
The Race
Coming into this stage, the race is being led by João Ultramar of Blue Mountain, who has a 30-second lead over his team-mate Héctor Azul. 3rd-placed Kyle Blackstone (Black Eagle Racing) is tied with Azul at 30 seconds behind the race leader. Kyle and Héctor share the lead in the Mountain Classification, while Kyle has a 1-point advantage over Niklas Groen of Racing Green in the race for the Points Classification jersey.
The front row of the starting grid saw Michał Czerwiński of Red Dragons and Federico Bianchi (Team Camargue) – the two back-markers in the race – line up alongside João Ultramar. Both had their fingers crossed for better performances in this stage.
Riders at the start.
Sprinteurs at the front, Rouleurs to the rear. Discrimination!
The early pace was set by Federico and Frankie Moss (Racing Green). These two established a lead over the initial flat sections of the stage and heading into the first cobbled section they had a clear 3-space advantage over the peloton. This initial application by Bianchi set the tone for his race. These two riders crested the first climb wheel-to-wheel and Federico managed to nick the 1 available Mountain point away from Frankie. Entering the short second cobbled stretch, the two Sprinteurs still held a slight advantage over the chasing pack.
Bianchi and Moss set the early pace.
Bianchi clinches Mountain point and leads into cobbles.
Hitting the mid-stage hair-pin turn, Frankie Moss had edged into the lead, while Federico was swallowed up by the fast-closing Blue Mountain riders. By this point, both Kyle Blackstone and Rhys Coch had also joined the lead group at the head of the race. As the riders completed the hair-pin, Michał Czerwiński also managed to bridge the gap, while Federico had decided to conserve his energy and drifted to the rear of the group to exploit the ‘free ride’. There was a clear gap before the rest of field.
Frankie Moss edges into the lead.
At the mid-point, the field is spread, while Bianchi takes a breather.
As the second climb of the stage approached, Czerwiński and Azul moved to the front and the latter was able to snag the second and final Mountain point of the stage. This ascent and the subsequent blockage caused by the long section of cobbles allowed the peloton to reform and Czerwiński became the pacesetter. But there was still a long way to ride. Following a section of curves, the racers hit the first intermediate points line in the stage. By this stage, Federico had returned to the front alongside fellow Sprinteur Frankie Moss. Bianchi’s decision to save some energy paid off as he sealed the 2 Points Classification points on offer, with the final point going to Frankie.
Azul moves to the front and snatches the 2nd Mountain point.
All that was left was the final rush to the finishing line. Federico crossed the line first, followed in swift succession by Frankie and Héctor. An exciting stage, bringing a third different stage winner. Frankie Moss will take 1 exhaustion into the next stage, while his team-mate Niklas Groen will carry forward two. The Combativity Award for this stage was deservedly won by Federico Bianchi.
The first three cross the line!
And the winner of Stage 3 is …
Federico Bianchi (Team Camargue).
Stage Result
- Federico Bianchi (Team Camargue)
- Frankie Moss (Racing Green) + 20”
- Héctor Azul (Blue Mountain) + 30”
- João Ultramar (Blue Mountain) + 1’00”
- Hansie Pienk (Rose Racers) + 1’00”
- Niklas Groen (Racing Green) + 1’20”
- Michał Czerwiński (Red Dragons) + 2’30”
- Rock Salmon (Rose Racers) + 2’30”
- Kyle Blackstone (Black Eagle Racing) + 2’30”
- Rhys Coch (Red Dragons) + 3’30”
- Michel Blanc (Team Camargue) + 3’30”
- Khariyn Battoyrog (Black Eagle Racing) + 7’40”
General Classification (after Stage 3/8)
- Héctor Azul
- João Ultramar + 0”
- Niklas Groen + 1’50”
- Kyle Blackstone + 2’00”
- Rock Salmon + 3’30”
- Michel Blanc + 3’40”
- Frankie Moss + 4’40”
- Hansie Pienk + 4’50”
- Federico Bianchi + 5’50”
- Rhys Coch + 7’10”
- Michał Czerwiński + 9’20”
- Khariyn Battoyrog + 11’30”
Mountain Points (Stage 3)
Federico Bianchi 1 pt
Héctor Azul 1 pt
Mountain Classification (after Stage 3/8)
Héctor Azul 6 pts
Kyle Blackstone 5 pts
Niklas Groen 3 pts
João Ultramar 3 pts
Khariyn Battoyrog 1 pt
Federico Bianchi 1 pt
Stage Points
Federico Bianchi 7 pts
Frankie Moss 4 pts
Héctor Azul 2 pts
João Ultramar 1 pt
Points Classification (after Stage 3/8)
Federico Bianchi 7 pts
Kyle Blackstone 6 pts
Niklas Groen 5 pts
Héctor Azul 5 pts
Frankie Moss 4 pts
João Ultramar 4 pts
Khariyn Battoyrog 1 pt