The first major test for the GC contenders at the Critérium du Dauphiné came on stage 6 finish on the final climbs, leading to a dynamic finale that shook up the general classification. While the pre-race favourites Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) battled to take the yellow jersey, then on the shoulders of Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quickstep), Florian Lipowitz climbed at his own pace to finish a strong third, taking over the white jersey from overnight race leader Evenepoel as the best young rider.
The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider showed that his performance was not a fluke on Saturday’s stage 7, with nearly 5000 metres of climbing over 131.6km of racing. Lipowitz (24) stayed in the main peloton as it thinned out over the first two ascents of Col de la Madeleine and Col de la Croix de Fer, positioning himself for the anticipated GC showdown on the final climb of Valmeinier 1800 to the finish line.
