As the breakaway neared the finish, the riders traded attacks, but there was no real beginning to the closing sprint. A quick closing kick from Casar gave him the stage win, with a 1 second gap over his mates. Boonen's Quick Step team came forward in the final two kilometers to lead him out, with Robert Hunter and Erik Zabel right in the mix. Boonen again made it to the line ahead of his rivals, essentially clinching the green jersey win. The peloton split on the way up the slight uphill finish, giving Cadel Evans and Yaroslav Popovych, among others, three seconds back on Contador.