Monday 6 June 2016 21:48, UK
Nacer Bouhanni sprinted to victory on stage one of the Criterium du Dauphine as Alberto Contador and Chris Froome safely negotiated a hectic finale to retain first and third places overall.
Bouhanni (Cofidis) claimed his eighth win of the season by muscling his way through a crowded field and then beating Jens Debusschere (Lotto Soudal) into second place and Sam Bennett (Bora-Argon 18) into third in Saint-Vulbas.
Contador (Tinkoff) and Froome (Team Sky) had been at the head of the peloton leading into the last 1.5km but then pulled aside as the sprint teams took over and both finished in the bunch.
The result means Contador, who took the race lead by winning Sunday's prologue, remains six seconds ahead of second-placed Richie Porte (BMC Racing) and 13 seconds in front of Froome in the general classification.
Bouhanni said: "I'm really happy to have won today. It was Cofidis' objective to get a stage win at the Dauphine. This is my eighth win this year, my fourth in the WorldTour. I'll do my best to get another stage win."
Contador said: "I remained at the front of the peloton in order to avoid risks of crashing and getting caught into splits in the bunch. Luckily, there weren't any.
"Cycling has changed. From the smallest to the biggest race, it's highly competitive. Maybe it's because sponsors ask for more, but there's no quiet finale anymore."
The eight-day Dauphine continues on Tuesday with a 168km second stage starting in Creches-sur-Saone and ending with a category-three summit finish at Chalmazel-Jeansagniere.
Contador added: "I know there's a hill in tomorrow's finale, but the truth is that I haven't read much of the road book yet. I'll have to pay attention. I believe the final hill is short. It might suit someone like Dan Martin."
Find out more about stage two's route in our race guide.
Stage one result
1 Nacer Bouhanni (Fra) Cofidis, 4:27:53
2 Jens Debusschere (Bel) Lotto Soudal, same time
3 Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Argon 18, st
4 Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Dimension Data, st
5 Jonas Van Genechten (Bel) IAM Cycling, st
6 Moreno Hofland (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo, st
7 Tony Hurel (Fra) Direct Energie, st
8 Sondre Holst Enger (Nor) IAM Cycling, st
9 Daryl Impey (RSA) Orica-GreenEdge, st
10 Edward Theuns (Bel) Trek-Segafredo, st
General classification
1 Alberto Contador (Esp) Tinkoff, 4:39:29
2 Richie Porte (Aus) BMC Racing, +6sec
3 Chris Froome (GB) Team Sky, +13
4 Dan Martin (Irl) Etixx - Quick-Step, +21
5 Julian Alaphilippe (Fra) Etixx - Quick-Step, +24
6 Wout Poels (Ned) Team Sky, +25
7 Romain Bardet (Fra) Ag2r-La Mondiale, +29
8 Adam Yates (GB) Orica-GreenEdge, +31
9 Diego Rosa (Ita) Astana, +37
10 Jesus Herrada (Esp) Movistar, +39
