Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) went on the attack on the first summit finish of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes on Friday as he attempted to gain time on his rivals after losing almost a minute in the TTT. However, Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) followed him and rolled in ahead of him in Crest-Voland with other rivals staying close by. That does not bode well as he faces bigger names at his debut Tour de France next month.
The stage was largely shaped by the 60-strong breakaway with Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe making the most of the day with four riders in the group. Two paced the whole day – Gianni Vermeersch and Callum Thornley – before Maxim Van Gils made a comeback win. It was his first win after not racing since Clasica Jaen in February. He out-sprinted Tobias Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility), while Van Gils' teammate, Luke Tuckwell took the yellow jersey after finishing third.
Further down the road, the big GC names were starting to get involved in the racing with Seixas starting stage 6 most expected to show his form in this very mountainous final three stages. He was a minute back on yellow jersey Alex Baudin (EF Education-EasyPost) and then about 50 seconds from Kevin Vauquelin (Netcompany-Ineos), Oscar Onley (Netcompany-Ineos) and Matteo Jorgenson (Visma | Lease a Bike) with 13 seconds on Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek) and Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek).
The stage didn't really lend itself to a race-defining attack from either Seixas or Del Toro, who were certainly the two main favourites coming into this race. But, Seixas did look to be on his limit at times on the final climb. The attack close to the bottom of the final climb saw riders like Baudin, Vauquelin and Cian Uijtdebroeks (Movistar) immediately lose contact.
He then gapped Ayuso and Skjelmose, though the Lidl-Trek pair settled into a steady tempo and limited their losses, joined by Jørgen Nordhagen (Visma | Lease a Bike). Jorgenson held on longer before being dropped with three kilometres remaining, losing only 13 seconds to Seixas and Del Toro on a day where he had started with roughly a minute's GC advantage.
Seixas would likely have wanted bigger and more decisive gaps on his rivals, and not have the added complication of six riders being ahead of him in GC. Most of them should be safely dispatched early on at the weekend, but Jorgenson still has 32 seconds on him. Former runner-up at the Giro Next Gen, Tuckwell, has over three minutes ahead in yellow – catching him will not be an easy task. Someone of the Frenchman's ability should flourish with the terrain still to come, though.
Stage 6 Results
Jun 12
| Pos | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🥇 | Maxim Van Gils | UNKRed Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | 4:06:34 |
| 🥈 | Tobias Halland Johannessen | UNKUno-X Mobility | +0:00 |
| 🥉 | Luke Tuckwell | UNKRed Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | +0:06 |
| 4 | Pablo Torres | UNKUAE Team Emirates-XRG | +0:13 |
| 5 | Raúl García | UNKMovistar Team | +0:33 |
| 6 | Yannis Voisard | UNKTudor Pro Cycling Team | +0:33 |
| 7 | Jordan Jegat | UNKTeam TotalEnergies | +0:33 |
| 8 | Cristian Rodriguez | UNKXDS Astana Team | +0:33 |
| 9 | Clément Braz Afonso | UNKGroupama-FDJ United | +0:33 |
| 10 | Lennart Jasch | UNKTudor Pro Cycling Team | +0:33 |
| 11 | Sam Maisonobe | UNKCofidis | +0:33 |
| 12 | José Félix Parra | UNKCaja Rural-Seguros RGA | +0:33 |
| 13 | Lars Craps | UNKLotto-Intermarché | +1:01 |
| 14 | Bruno Armirail | UNKTeam Visma | Lease a Bike | +1:01 |
| 15 | Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet | UNKGroupama-FDJ United | +1:18 |
| 16 | Georg Steinhauser | UNKEF Education-EasyPost | +1:18 |
| 17 | Mattéo Vercher | UNKTeam TotalEnergies | +2:02 |
| 18 | Michael Gogl | UNKAlpecin-Premier Tech | +2:26 |
| 19 | Quinn Simmons | UNKLidl-Trek | +2:34 |
| 20 | Isaac del Toro | UNKUAE Team Emirates-XRG | +3:15 |
| 21 | Paul Seixas | UNKDecathlon CMA CGM Team | +3:15 |
| 22 | Matteo Jorgenson | UNKTeam Visma | Lease a Bike | +3:28 |
| 23 | Mattias Skjelmose | UNKLidl-Trek | +3:37 |
| 24 | Juan Ayuso | UNKLidl-Trek | +3:37 |
| 25 | Robbe Dhondt | UNKTeam Picnic PostNL | +3:41 |
| 26 | Jørgen Nordhagen | UNKTeam Visma | Lease a Bike | +3:41 |
| 27 | Pablo Castrillo | UNKMovistar Team | +4:11 |
| 28 | Cian Uijtdebroeks | UNKMovistar Team | +4:11 |
| 29 | Ramses Debruyne | UNKAlpecin-Premier Tech | +4:15 |
| 30 | Luke Plapp | UNKTeam Jayco-AlUla | +4:27 |
But the worry for Seixas will be Del Toro. The Mexican champion looked to be out on a steady club ride while the French youngster was pulling all kinds of faces in front of him. Eventually, the UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider gave Seixas turns and led them across the line, but he is clearly the man that Seixas will be most focused on. If he can't distance him then he is in a fight for third place at the Tour and not yellow with Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike).
Why the margins matter for July
Del Toro's ability to follow is made more striking by his season. A stage 3 crash at Itzulia Basque Country left him with a thigh muscle tear, hip contusions and road rash, and he had not raced since. Del Toro's ability to match Seixas stride for stride after that disruption suggested Seixas's current climbing level remains within reach of his peers.
Del Toro and Seixas are beginning to form a really good rivalry already. The Mexican finished just nine seconds behind the Frenchman at Strade Bianche before Del Toro went on to win Tirreno-Adriatico. He did crash in the Basque Country but Seixas then dominated there. This is hopefully the first time they both have a proper face-off in the mountains.
Jorgenson added to Seixas not being quite at his top form after the stage where he told Cycling Pro Net after the stage that his form was "not my absolute best shape" and "nothing like I was in April, but I'm coming back." The rider from the US is returning from a broken collarbone at Amstel Gold Race but is not at peak form yet but only lost 13 seconds to Seixas and Del Toro.
The duo seemed to be coasting at the finish whereas Jorgenson was going all out, but it is still an interesting takeaway. It left Seixas's performance looking measured. The GC standings after stage 6 told the same story: Seixas moved to seventh at +3:06, with Jorgenson at +2:34, Ayuso and Skjelmose at +3:15, and Del Toro at +3:22.
Seixas will, of course, be focused on the climbs to come this weekend with the Grand Colombier and Plateau de Solaison before we can really form a clear opinion on this, but with so much hype around this French wonderkid, it is hard to avoid talking about what he will face with the return of Pogačar and Vingegaard at the Tour de France.
That duo are another level up again, so if Seixas struggles with Del Toro there could be worries. That said, there are plenty of opportunities in the final stages and there is time to build more form before July.
Cover image credit: Gaetan Flamme
