The Rodez finish on stage 14 of the Tour de France was on paper a far easier equation than the previous two days but the finale served to again shake up the overall standings.
It proved to be a mixed finish for Simon Yates (Orica-Scott) as the 24-year-old increased his white jersey lead but conceded time to his general classification rivals. Yates crossed the line in 13th place, four seconds down on new yellow jersey holder Chris Froome (Team Sky), but remains in seventh place overall.
"I lost a couple seconds to the very front guys, but there's not much you can do. They were going really fast. I put a fair bit of time into a few guys behind, which I'm happy with," Yates said after the stage finish. "I knew this climb from a few years ago, we did the same finish in 2015, and I finished really far out the back. Today was much more difficult.
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"I think it was a good day all around."
Yates' former teammate Michael Matthews (Team Sunweb) took the win ahead of Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) after the frenetic and fast finale into Rodez. Yates explained that like in 2015, positioning was key to the finale and thanked his teammates for keeping him at the front on a day that could have ended his top-ten aspirations,
"There was a little bit of wind about today, and we did a really good job of keeping position," he said. "We were always in the front, if there was ever a slightly dangerous moment, we were there. We really had a greater presence today. I have to thank the boys, they did a fantastic job, not just today but throughout the Tour. They've been fantastic. Another day done."
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