Aussie rider Richie Porte will be looking to build on his Stage 4 win as he continues to chase down race leader Thomas De Gendt, on a flat, yet potentially dangerous Stage 5 of the Criterium du Dauphine. Catch all the live coverage and updates on The Roar from 11pm (AEST).
The 175.5km trek from La Tour de Salvagny takes the riders north of Lyon to the finishing destination of Macon with a sprint finish.
The day kicks off with a leg burner of a climb to get the muscles kicking into gear at over eight percent gradient, but luckily for the field, it’s only a short one.
The opening 80km of the day will be a real test for the sprinters as the mountain men can look forward to multiple climbs.
The major hurdle of Stage 5 comes in the form of an 8.8km ascent up the side of Col du Fut d’Avenas, hitting the peloton with a grinding 5 percent incline.
After that, there will be a small handful of minor and short climbs throughout the second half of the day, including the Col du Bois Clair which presents itself inside the final 35km of the stage.
While not a long climb, it’s sharp enough to do damage to any tired legs that are reeling from earlier in the day and is likely to be the final field thinner leading into Macon.
Flat road inside the last leg of the stage becomes tricky to deal with through the streets of Macon and into the finish.
There are five key sharp turns inside the last two and a half kilometres, making it a tricky battleground for teams to fight into position.
The piece de resistance of a tricky lead up to the line is a well-placed roundabout with 600 metres to go which is likely to cause havoc to organisation and positioning leading into the jump.
It is all but guaranteed to be a sprint finish on this one.
The key for the main contenders is to stay patient in the pack throughout the first half of the stage, conserving energy over the few climbs they are hit with.
Arnaud Demare has proven his sprint finishes already in the opening stages this year and is lining up for another strong result today if he can get his lead out.
Richie Porte impressed big time with his time trial win yesterday, beating out time trial world champion Tony Martin and even upstaging multi-time Tour de France winner and time trial expert Chris Froome.
Porte is now in second place and just 27 seconds behind race leader De Gendt in the General Classification standings.
Connor Bennett
Editor
Connor Bennett
Editor
No changes in the GC standings thanks to the blanket finish. Thomas De Gendt remains race leader with a 27-second gap back to Aussie Richie Porte.
Connor Bennett
Editor
Bauhaus is just 22 years of age with a massive future ahead of him. He's shown off his sheer power and pace a few times in 2017, proving to be one to watch for the future.
Connor Bennett
Editor
A string of Frenchmen coming in behind Bauhaus.
Connor Bennett
Editor
Connor Bennett
Editor
PHIL BAUHAUS WINS STAGE 5!! Kristoff was the best positioned but pressure coming from his back wheel meant he jumped a touch early. Once Bauhaus jumped away on his outside it was all over for Kristoff who could only sit back and watch the young German cruise away to victory.
Connor Bennett
Editor
FINAL KILOMETRE Movistar were left behind a bit in the last few kilometres but now they have a few wheels getting up front. There is some real contact going on here in the tight streets. The lead outs are moving around all over the shop, Katusha looking the best positioned at the moment. Inside 300 metres now!! Kristoff is hanging back... and he jumps!! But he is swamped by PHIL BAUHAUS WHO FLIES PAST!! PHIL BAUHAUS WINS STAGE 5!!
Connor Bennett
Editor
2km to go Some sharp turns through the streets testing the pack here and their positioning. A string of red jerseys out front as they line continues to thin out.
Connor Bennett
Editor
3km to go Sky and Katusha leading the way but neither are willing to leave any room for the other.
Connor Bennett
Editor
4km to go Riders dropping off the back of the main pack now as the pace continues to pick up leading into the finish. Plenty of different jerseys coming up at the pointy end of the peleton now.
Connor Bennett
Editor
5km to go A lot of jostling and looking over shoulders now as the teams try to wrestle their way into position and scope each other out.
Connor Bennett
Editor
6km to go Team Sky have been very quiet today, sitting back in the pack, but they're getting some numbers up front now. Van Baarle is done now!! There we go, the breakaway has been completely captured and it's back to a pack race now!!
Connor Bennett
Editor
7km to go Movistar and Katusha as well as FDJ are all leading the way for the peleton, getting in behind each other and looking very strong coming into the finish. Van Baarle is well within their sights now.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Well, at least the peloton haven't butchered this a third time. All Demare's now.
Connor Bennett
Editor
8km to go Some confusion on the roundabouts and the peleton is beginning to stretch out now through the streets.
Connor Bennett
Editor
9km to go The peleton crossing the highway now as they head in towards Macon. 30 seconds the difference now.
Connor Bennett
Editor
Connor Bennett
Editor
12km to go All eyes on van Baarle at the moment as he continues to fight out front with a 39-second lead. The peleton aren't looking as fluent as you'd hope with just over 10 kilometres to go.
Connor Bennett
Editor
14km to go The red shirts of Katusha looking prevalent out the front of the peleton as they look to take control leading into the final stages.
Connor Bennett
Editor
15km to go Now Minnaard is gone as well. There you go, Marco Minnaard is the latest of the original breakaway to be brushed aside and now it is just van Baarle out front on his own, holding onto a 40-second lead ahead of the peleton.