Tim Merlier has won his second consecutive sprint stage, coming from the back of the bunch to assert his claim on the green jersey.
As the peloton turned onto the finish of stage eight, the Soudal Quick-Step rider was so far behind —edged out on the corner— that he barely appeared in the television shots. Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin Premier-Tech) started his final lead-out for teammate Jasper Philipsen, stringing the group out. Merlier was forced to launch early, riding the slipstream and hopping forward, rider by rider.
Buoyed by his momentum, Merlier sprung out on the left-hand side, nudging ahead of Philipsen, Biniam Girmay (NSN Cycling Team) and Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA GCM). As he crossed the finish line, in front by a clear margin, he punched the air.
“I needed to fight for my position all the time until the last minute,” said Merlier after the race. “Before the corner, I was a bit boxed in, and then they almost crashed and I thought it was over. I gave it a try to come back on the guys who did the lead-out, and I was coming with so much speed. It was 250 [metres] then. I gave it a try until the finish, but in the last 50 metres, I couldn’t push anymore.
“Mostly, if you win one [stage], you can win a second. I’m happy that on three [sprint] stages, I claimed two of them.”
Merlier’s first win had come yesterday, after another bunch sprint. Today’s victory is the Belgian’s fifth Tour de France career stage win.
Jasper Stuyven, who had come to the front to position Merlier with just over two kilometres to go, praised his teammate’s intuition. “It was a hectic final once again,” he said. “We got a bit swamped on that corner with 2.4 [kilometres remaining]. I really had to find a way. I wasn’t sure if Tim was following. We also decided that if I had to make a move there, he would drift back a bit. He’s super good at feeling that right moment. I didn’t see the sprint, but he did it once again.”
Girmay finished second, with Kooij completing the podium. Merlier’s win puts him second in the points classification, behind Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek).
Otherwise, it had been a quiet day for the peloton, offering a second day of respite for the GC riders. Starting in Périgueux and finishing in Bergerac, today’s 180.4-kilometre flat route took riders through France’s rolling wine country, with the chateaux, vineyards and rivers of the Dordogne getting plenty of airtime.
Liam Slock (Lotto Intermarché), Jakub Otruba (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) and Tour de France debutant Thibault Guernalec (TotalEnergies) formed an early break and spent the day out front as a trio, while sprint teams Alpecin Premier-Tech, Soudal Quick-Step and NSN Cycling Team took turns to control the gap.
At the intermediate sprint, just under 60 kilometres from the finish, Otruba outsprinted Slock to claim 25 points. Back in the peloton, the sprinters had their eyes on the remaining loot, with Jasper Philipsen, Max Kanter (XDS Astana) and Mads Pedersen all collecting a handful of points for themselves.
Slock, meanwhile, ditched his companions the Côte du Buisson-de-Cadouin, 40 kilometres from the finish. Initially, it seemed like a doomed mission. But as he came into the last 20 kilometres, he still had a lead of over a minute. It had only reduced by a few seconds 10 kilometres later. Could he?
Slock gritted his teeth, stared at his power meter, dug deep. But as the wide road dragged upwards and new teams began to pull, the seconds started to tumble. Slock was eventually caught 1.3 kilometres before the line, the flamme rouge in sight. The win, of course, would be Merlier’s.
Unlike the GC, where gaps formed after stage six, the points classification remains wide open. Pedersen, who has ruthlessly pursued intermediate sprint points, leads Merlier by just 15 points. Girmay trails by 10 points, at 203, with Philipsen at 175. The green jersey, it seems, is all to play for.
STAGE 8, PÉRIGUEUX > BERGERAC, 180.4KM
1. Tim Merlier (Bel) Soudal Quick-Step, in 3:52:50
2. Biniam Girmay (Eri) NSN Cycling
3. Olav Kooij (Ned) Decathlon CMA CGM
4. Jasper Philipsen (Bel) Alpecin-Premier Tech
5. Pavel Bittner (Cze) Team Picnic PostNL
6. Rick Pluimers (Ned) Tudor Pro Cycling
7. Pascal Ackermann (Ger) Team Jayco AlUla
8. Clément Russo (Fra) Groupama-FDJ United
9. Max Kanter (Ger) XDS Astana
10. Milan Fretin (Bel) Cofidis, all at the same time
TOUR DE FRANCE 2026 GENERAL CLASSIFICATION AFTER STAGE EIGHT
1. Tadej Pogačar (Slo) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, in 28:49:07
2. Jonas Vingegaard (Den) Visma-Lease a Bike, +2:42
3. Isaac del Toro (Mex) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, +3:27
4. Remco Evenepoel (Bel) Redu Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, +3:30
5. Juan Ayuso (Esp) Lidl-Trek, +3:34
6. Paul Seixas (Fra) Decathlon CMA CGM, +3:55
7. Florian Lipowitz (Ger) Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, +4:00
8. Lenny Martinez (Fra) Bahrain Victorious, +4:21
9. Mattias Skjelmose (Den) Lidl-Trek,+4:57
10. Mathias Vacek (Cze) Lidl-Trek, +7:10