On a 184 km journey between Montesson and Bellegarde, it is the yellow jersey holder Tim Merlier who emerged victorious for the second consecutive time in this Paris-Nice. A recap of this stage.
Paris-Nice offered us a turbulent stage today. Although the rather classic course suggested no other scenario than a bunch sprint, it nevertheless caused a crash in the peloton. Some leaders like Arnaud Démare and also the yellow jersey Tim Merlier suffered setbacks. About fifteen riders were down a little over 45 kilometers from the finish. Among them, Frenchman Florian Sénéchal had to withdraw.
At the front as yesterday, we found Alexandre Delettre (polka dot jersey) and Samuel Fernandez, who had already broken away in the first stage. The two companions were joined by Jonas Abrahamsen. The Norwegian, who had shone in the last two editions of the Tour de France, eventually left his unfortunate companions to be caught up a little less than three kilometers from the finish.
Tim Merlier a notch above the others
If the main difference with yesterday’s stage was having a long final straight of five kilometers, the winner did not change. Much more powerful than his opponents in Paris-Nice, Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step) made no concessions. “It’s a victory I will certainly remember. It’s the first time in my life, in my career, that I’ve won with a leader’s jersey,” explained the Belgian sprinter at the finish. “It was a difficult day with several big crashes; someone hit me from behind, but fortunately, I’m okay,” he added.
It should be noted that as in the first stage, it is a Frenchman who finishes in second place. However, it is not Arnaud Démare but Emilien Jeannière from the Total Direct Energie team. A pleasant surprise for this young French sprinter who is becoming increasingly comfortable in mass finishes.
In the general classification, Tim Merlier keeps his yellow jersey for tomorrow. However, he is very likely to lose it after the team time trial that awaits the 151 riders still in the race on the Nevers Magny-Cours circuit.
