Paris-Nice: Aleksandr Vlasov flies to victory at Madone d'Utelle; Brandon McNulty holds on to yellow jersey but loses time

Paris-Nice saw another difficult stage today, with the summit finish at the Madone d'Utelle. Gaps were not huge, Brandon McNulty held on to the yellow jersey despite being dropped in the finale; whilst Aleksandr Vlasov won the stage following a strong attack.

Horrid weather conditions once again were present at the start of the stage and this made it very complicated. Plenty riders tried to set off the front of the group but few successfully, it was a tricky start where only two riders managed to get a decisive gap over the peloton. They were Benjamin Thomas and Johan Jacobs.

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The duo never enjoyed much of an advantage, and against a fast-moving peloton they also didn't have realistic chances of fighting for a result on the day. Jacobs went solo off the front with 37 kilometers to go, and was caught by the peloton with 14 kilometers to go.

In the final small descent Soudal - Quick-Step turned on the heat and split the peloton into a few groups. A few Top10 riders were caught out but without the firepower in front the splits didn't last. A mostly compact peloton headed towards the last-minute addition climb of the Madone d'Utelle.

Soudal - Quick-Step and INEOS Grenadiers took control of the group, slowly thinning the group. Remco Evenepoel launched the first attack with 4.5 kilometers to go, followed by a few riders; Aleksandr Vlasov went over the top. The Russian got a 15-second gap as Wilco Kelderman pushed the pace for Matteo Jorgenson.

Another attack from Evenepoel inside the final two kilometers created a five-rider group, with race leader Brandon McNulty having to chase on. Evenepoel was followed by Jorgenson, Buitrago, Roglic and Skjelmose as the yellow jersey struggled and Vlasov remained in front.

The BORA - hansgrohe rider held on to his gap all the way to the finish, taking his first win in over a year in convincing fashion. Remco Evenepoel and Primoz Roglic sprinted to second and third; Matteo Jorgenson was in the group as well. Brandon McNulty lost 19 seconds to that group, however that was enough for him to hold on to the yellow jersey.

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