Win Tour de France Stage Nine

Monday would be a rest day, meant that some riders would be willing to spend themselves and charge down the long descent. With the final fifty km being flat and slightly downhill, it seemed likely that any big mountain attacks would be ridden down by the end. Many of the teams which hoped to be competitive in the final week, realized that they needed to wear down Team Astana, which had dominated the peloton in every stage. This prompted attacks by big-name riders which otherwise would have been left to their lesser-known teammates. When asked about whether Saxo Bank was trying to force the yellow onto Astana, to put more pressure on the team, Lance Armstrong replied: “That’s one theory; you never know what they’re thinking. Lance Armstrong explained Astana's strategy: let the others scrap over the jersey, while Astana focuses on the win in Paris. (Patrick Hertzog/AFP/Getty Images) Lance Armstrong explained Astana's strategy: let the others scrap over the jersey, while Astana focuses on the win in Paris. (Patrick Hertzog/AFP/Getty Images) "We had a couple cards to play there. We could have tried to keep AG2R in the jersey or we could have ridden even easier and put Sanchez in the jersey. "That might actually have been a better move for us, considering the days that are coming up and the strength of the two teams comparatively you never know." When asked how Astana would have reacted had they held the yellow jersey, Armstrong’s answer revealed Astana’s plans and priorities: “We would have changed our tactics. We would have let other groups go and tried, essentially, to give it away.” Astana, it seems, is totally focused on the final week in the Alps, and totally focused on the overall win, not the overall lead. When asked if Astana was planning any attacks in Stage Nine, Armstrong made a remarkably accurate prediction: “I would expect Saxo to do the same thing [as yesterday], put a Voigt or an Arvesen up in the break and see if one of the Schleck brothersSilence-Lotto riders Johann Van Summeren and Sebastian Lang attacked at the starting line, drawing a response from a group of ten competitors. Four out of this group—Jens Voigt (Saxo Bank), Franco Pelizotti (Liquigas), Leonardo Duque (Cofidis), and Pierrick Fedrigo (Bbox) pulled away from the lead group. Lance Armstrong, Alberto Contador, Sergio Paulinho, and Rinaldo Nocentini climb through the mountains. (Joel Saget/AFP/Getty Images) Lance Armstrong, Alberto Contador, Sergio Paulinho, and Rinaldo Nocentini climb through the mountains. (Joel Saget/AFP/Getty Images) (From R) Leonardo Duque of Cofidis, Franco Pellizotti of Liquigas (behind), Pierrick Fedrigo of Bbox Bouygues Telecom, and Jens Voigt of Team Saxo Bank and Franco Pellizotti of Liquigas led the first half of the stage. (Pascal Pavani/AFP/Getty Images) (From R) Leonardo Duque of Cofidis, Franco Pellizotti of Liquigas (behind), Pierrick Fedrigo of Bbox Bouygues Telecom, and Jens Voigt of Team Saxo Bank and Franco Pellizotti of Liquigas led the first half of the stage. (Pascal Pavani/AFP/Getty Images) Lance Armstrong, apparently not willing to let so many powerful riders make an escape, launched an attack of his own at the 20 km mark, followed by yellow-jersey wearer Rinaldo Nocentini. This brought the whole peloton to life, and within five km, the breakaway was absorbed. Jens Voigt, Franco Pelizotti, Pierrick Duqure, and Pierrick Fedrigo maintained a lead, but no one in the peloton was worried about a four-man breakaway. The four opened a gap of 2:30 as the peloton relaxed. Once the climbing started, the individual attacks started. Laurens Ten Dam, then Amets Txurruka and Jürgen Van de Broek went out; Sergio Paulinho, Stephane Goubert, and Egoi Martinez followed. Katusha rider Vladimir Karpets crossed over to join them. Jens Voigt’s crushing pace proved too much for Duque, who dropped. Karepts flatted on the ascent, getting dropped, while Thomas Voeckler attacked, as did a few others. The descent went without incident, and at the base of the Tourmalet, the lead three were ahead by four minutes, with Duque behind, followed by a group of eight: Laurens Ten Dam, Amets Txurruka, Jürgen Van de Broek, Sergio Paulinho, Egoi Matrtinez, Juan Manuel Garate, David Moncoutie, and Thomas Voeckler a minute ahead of the peloton. Maxime Bouet made an attempt to bridge the gap to the group of eight; after a long struggle, he caught them a few kilometers from the peak. However, he was dropped soon after, having spent himself crossing the gap. Meanwhile, Pelizotti attacked, and Fedrigo followed, leaving Voigt on the ascent. Back in the peloton, AG2Rput five riders onto the front of the peloton to control the pace and protect the yellow jersey. Astana was content to allow Nocentini to keep the jersey, some of the other teams, Saxo Bank in particular, were likely to want to push the issue. The chase group caught up with Voigt a kilometer before the peak. Saxo Bank might have changed strategies. While it originally seemed that Saxo Bank planned to challenge the yellow jersey, it now seemed the team might have conceded the stage and the jersey.