Kevin Vauquelin and Oscar Onley moved up the General Classification to seventh and eighth overall on a transitional second stage at the Tour Auvergne – Rhône-Alpes.
The race’s longest stage since 2003 played out across 234.3 undulating kilometres on a day which fell into the hands of the breakaway.
With a lot of attention on Wednesday’s upcoming team time trial, the scene was set for the break to contest stage honours – with Anthon Charmig (UnoX-Mobility) taking the solo win into Le Puy-en-Velay.
Netcompany INEOS worked well to both protect their leaders and conserve energy where possible ahead of key tests to come.
Vauquelin and Onley both moved up two places on the GC, but remained 32 seconds behind overnight race leader Alex Baudin (EF Education – Easypost).