The 9th stage of the 2025 Tour de France, contested this Sunday between Chinon and Châteauroux over 174,1 kilometers, was won in a sprint by Belgian Tim Merlier (Soudal-Quick Step). Already the winner in Dunkirk during the 3rd stage, Merlier won ahead of Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek), wearing the green jersey, and his compatriot Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Caps), at the end of a finale marked by a spectacular breakaway by Mathieu Van der Poel.
A two-person breakaway from the start
From kilometer 0, two riders from the Alpecin-Deceuninck team, Mathieu Van der Poel and Jonas Rickaert, took to their heels. Their perfect understanding and perseverance allowed them to open up a maximum gap of 5 minutes and 30 seconds on a peloton that only really reacted as the final 50 kilometers approached. Rickaert protected his leader for a long time, before pulling away with 6 kilometers to go, leaving Van der Poel to attempt a final stand alone.
Hope lasted until the final kilometer. Amid cheers from the crowd gathered at the entrance to Châteauroux, Van der Poel was caught about 800 meters from the finish line. He spoke shortly after the finish: "We didn't think we'd come so close to victory. It's a bit of a shame, but we have no regrets. It was a great day for both of us."
A disorganized but decisive mass sprint
The finale, marked by a strong headwind and a break 30 kilometers from the finish, disrupted the usual sprint teams' trains. Several teams, including Soudal-Quick Step, Lidl-Trek, and Uno-X, had to put their pacemakers to work earlier than expected. In this tense environment, Tim Merlier managed his effort perfectly, launching his sprint 180 meters from the finish line and clearly beating Jonathan Milan to the finish line.
This is Merlier's second stage victory in this Tour, after the one he won in Dunkirk. A resounding confirmation for the Belgian sprinter, who had been caught out the day before in Laval by a puncture in the final.
Tadej Pogacar still in yellow
Despite the intensity of the stage (50,013 km/h average), none of the favorites lost any time at the end of the day. The Slovenian Tadej pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) retains the yellow jersey, 54 seconds ahead of Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick Step). However, his team loses a key player: João Almeida, fourth in the general classification in 2024, retired after around 100 kilometers. The Portuguese rider was still suffering from the after-effects of his crash during the 7th stage to Mûr-de-Bretagne.
Heading for the mid-mountains
On Monday, the peloton will tackle the first mid-mountain stage between Ennezat and Le Mont-Dore – Puy de Sancy (165 km). A first battle between the general classification favorites is expected, with several climbs on the agenda and a high-altitude finish that could provide an attacking terrain for Pogacar or his main rivals like Evenepoel, Vingegaard, or Roglic.
The Tour is therefore changing its profile after a first week dominated by sprinters. Tim Merlier has confirmed his current form, but it's now the turn of the climbers and punchers to enter the scene.
