Peter Sagan triumphed in a thrilling bunch finish Wednesday to clinch stage five of the Tour de France.
The Bora-Hansgrohe rider came around the outside of the pack with around 100 meters remaining of the 175.5-kilometer trek from Saint-Die-des-Vosges to Colmar.
And by the time Sagan put himself in position there was never going to be any other winner as the Slovakian sprinted past the line first.
Daryl Impey led the sprint to try and set up the win for Mitchelton-Scott team teammate Matteo Trentin, but the move didn't work out as planned and Trentin finished third behind Wout van Aert, who continued his impressive Tour to cut yellow jersey holder Julian Alaphilippe's lead.
MORE: Elia Viviani gets first stage win; Julian Alaphilippe retains yellow jersey
Sunweb had done plenty of groundwork at the front of the peloton to get Michael Matthews into position, only for the Australian to begin his sprint too early and place seventh.
After attempting to break clear with around 7.5km remaining, Rui Costa faded and was swallowed up with relative ease with 2km to go.
Van Aert's efforts have moved the Team Jumbo-Visma rider to just 14 seconds back of Alaphilippe.
"I have to thank all my teammates. We controlled the race all day, and I did my best to finish the job."@petosagan thanks his team-mates after his stage win. #TDF2019 pic.twitter.com/uypJF9zftS
— Tour de France (@LeTour) July 10, 2019
SAGAN ANSWERS HIS CRITICS
There have been suggestions from some that Sagan, 29, had lost his edge after a difficult season to date, while he narrowly lost out to Mike Teunissen in Saturday’s opening stage.
But Sagan delivered the perfect response.
"I did my best and it came. If I don't win, then everybody will ask me what is missing. You can see, nothing is missing. It's just everybody needs good luck and a good day for a win," he said.
STAGE RESULT
1. Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) 4:02:33
2. Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) "
3. Matteo Trentin (Mitchelton-Scott) "
4. Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain-Merida) "
5. Greg Van Avermaet (CCC Team) "
CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS
General Classification
1. Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck-Quick Step) 18:44:12
2. Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) +0:14
3. Steven Kruijswijk (Jumbo-Visma) +0:25
Points Classification
1. Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) 144
2. Michael Matthews (Team Sunweb) 97
3. Elia Viviani (Deceuninck-Quick Step) 92
King of the Mountains
1. Tim Wellens (Lotto Soudal) 17
2. Toms Skujins (Trek-Segafredo) 9
3. Xandro Meurisse (Wanty-Gobert Cycling Team) 6
WHAT'S NEXT?
Expect the general classification contenders to bear their teeth on the 160.5km route from Mulhouse to La Planche Des Belles Filles, with seven categorized climbs to negotiate.