In management on Friday, looking for his limits on Saturday, David Gaudu opted for a third strategy this Sunday during the eighth and final stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné. Towards the Plateau des Glières, the Breton climber seized his chance via the morning breakaway, which he managed to integrate after a great battle in the Col de la Forclaz. However, the peloton had decided not to give any chance to the fugitives, who were finally caught at the foot of the final climb. David Gaudu then took the 30e place in the stage, and acquired fifteenth in the final general classification.
The mountainous triptych of the Critérium du Dauphiné came to an end this Sunday via 160 kilometers and 3,700 meters of elevation gain towards the Plateau des Glières, in the Bornes massif. The final ascent (9.3 km at 7.3%) was preceded by the Salève (12 km at 7%), but it is also the muscular departure, through the Col de la Forclaz (7.1 km at 7 .2%), which was feared by some. Not by David Gaudu, decided, on this last day of the race, to go on the offensive. The Breton then applied himself in the first kilometers, and did not miss the good move, formed as he approached the summit. “The objective was to take the breakaway today, confirmed Benoît Vaugrenard. Yesterday, he had to stay with the leaders because we thought it was going to be down to the wire. Today, we thought it was going to be more down to the breakaway. We really had to try, we couldn’t settle for sixteenth place.” Unfortunately for David Gaudu and his ten companions in flight, including Bruno Armirail, Guillaume Martin, Marc Soler and Lorenzo Fortunato, the peloton never really recovered in this final act.
“This Dauphiné will take me a step further”, David Gaudu
At the head of the race, the breakaway gradually nibbled ground, and obtained up to a four-minute lead, but the Ineos Grenadiers team accelerated on the penultimate climb, that of Salève, and the group’s company head has seriously taken lead in the wing. “We were a really good group, I thought it was going to do it, but we didn’t give us enough timeconfided David. It’s the game, even if the best placed, which was Soler, was quite far away”. Thanks to the help of the Bora-hansgrohe and Lidl-Trek teams in the transition leading to the foot of the ascent of the Plateau des Glières, the pack even came within thirty seconds of the group. David Gaudu insisted on the first slopes, and even tried to follow Giulio Ciccone, attacking among the favorites, before finishing at his own pace. “I arrived already well underway, then I did the last climb as best I could, he said. I didn’t have much left in the end.” “He gave a lot from the start and left a lot of energy to try to take the breakaway, so from the moment you are caught by such leaders, your race is naturally over,” Benoît decided.
At the end of the final climb, Carlos Rodriguez took the victory and Primoz Roglic saved his yellow jersey. Thirtieth on the line, David Gaudu moved up to fifteenth in the general classification. “The goal of this Dauphiné was to get back on track, make new efforts and test oneself against othersexplained the person concerned. We are couriers, so we obviously want to get results. But it’s already difficult to get results when you’re at 100%, but I know I wasn’t here. This Dauphiné, on the other hand, will take me a step further. We are in a phase of ramping up. Often, it was when I was able to work well on the Dauphiné that I succeeded in my Tour behind. So see you on the Tour! » When it came time to take stock of the week, Benoît Vaugrenard seemed rather satisfied. “We were active in the breakaways, even if none went to the end this week, and we didn’t come far from victory with Romain, he said. In the mountains, we were missing something to go play, but the team worked well for the rest. Above all, they were actors. There is still work to do, we know that, but the French championship will allow us to continue our build-up of pressure, and we have three weeks left before the Tour.”
