Tour de France Stage 10 Analysis

After a much needed rest day the peloton headed back on the roads to continue the journey to Paris. Today was a toss up for who would come out on top, and in the end it belonged to the breakaway. A sprinter would claim the victory and defeat the World Champion in the process, as cycling fans were treated to another thrilling finish.

Matthews Comes Out On Top

Orica-Bike Exchange claimed their first win of the tour, as Michael Matthews took his first career Tour de France stage win in an exciting sprint to the finish. The Australian was a member of the breakaway that opened up a healthy gap on the peloton early on and eventually split into a seven man group. All seven made it to the final straightaway where Matthews bounced to the outside and cruised to the win.

His teammates Luke Durbridge and Daryl Impey were instrumental in his victory. Both riders made sure the pace remained high in order for Matthews to do as little as possible. Impey went off the front multiple times in an attempt to get the group to chase him. Peter Sagan ended up doing the chasing and in the end it may have had an effect on him in the final sprint.

Sagan Regains Green Jersey

It was another brave effort today from Sagan as he attempted to go for victory in the breakaway. Despite just missing out on the victory in the sprint, he did manage to regain the green jersey. He moves ahead of Mark Cavendish in the standings, and he may very well hold on to the jersey until Paris at this point.

Top Riders Stay Safe

It was a quiet day for the top general classification riders as the peloton calmly crossed the line today. There was no real urgency to bring back the breakaway. At one point it appeared they might try and cut the gap when the lead dwindled down to four minutes. However, there appeared to be no real organized effort to bring back the riders up the road.

Thomas Voeckler made an appearance at the front of the peloton during the stage, which provided many of us some entertainment. Other than that it was a rather uneventful day today. Most of the riders appeared to be well rested, as they prepare for what should be a sprint stage tomorrow.

Stage Highlights

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7by25xpo_pQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oSqlagTpGg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzwoKcFprzs

Tweets Of The Day

You could say we got a little excited. Congrats @blingmatthews and the entire @ORICA_BE team! Monster BSP tonight pic.twitter.com/iVTF46C961 — Dan Jones (@ozDanJones) July 12, 2016

Only 4 Australian's have stage wins in all 3 Grand Tours. @blingmatthews the second to have individual wins in each https://t.co/ux0XQLyWvA — Cycling Australia (@CyclingAus) July 12, 2016

#TDF2016 @petosagan just beaten to the line in the sprint, but the UCI World Champion regains the #MaillotVert! pic.twitter.com/5d5R0Y2t5M — Tinkoff (@tinkoff_team) July 12, 2016

Stage 10 Data

Matthews hit a top speed of 66.82 km/h to out-sprint Sagan, 55m from the finish line! #TDFdata #TDF2016 pic.twitter.com/rtd99MHs2V — letourdata (@letourdata) July 12, 2016

The Peloton went for it, but too late. Stage win for the Breakaway looks likely. #TDFdata #TDF2016 pic.twitter.com/oN7BbdUwZN — letourdata (@letourdata) July 12, 2016

IAM and Direct Energie try to cut the Breakaway's lead, which peaked at 7'4". #TDFdata #TDF2016 pic.twitter.com/ccVVpeYNoD — letourdata (@letourdata) July 12, 2016

Stage Results

Le classement de l'étape / Stage 10 classification #TDF2016 pic.twitter.com/KlGcuUyXH0 — Le Tour de France (@LeTour) July 12, 2016

General Classification After Stage 10

Le classement général après 10 étapes / The overall classification after 10 stages #TDF2016 pic.twitter.com/OdDkTx6yRu — Le Tour de France (@LeTour) July 12, 2016

Points Classification

Peter Sagan 242 Pts Mark Cavendish 204 Pts Marcel Kittel 182 Pts Michael Matthews 124 Pts Greg Van Avermaet 112 Pts

Young Riders Classification

Adam Yates Louis Meintjes + 00’39” Warren Barguil + 02’35” Wilco Kelderman + 05’12” Emanuel Buchmann +08’32”

Mountain Classification

Thibaut Pinot 80 Pts Rafal Majka 77 Pts Tom Dumoulin 58 Pts Rui Costa 50 Pts Thomas De Gendt 36 Pts

Team Classification

BMC Movistar Team Sky Astana AG2R La Mondiale

Main Photo: