Alex Baudin sprinted to fourth against the best classics riders in the world after a powerful performance in the break during Stage 9 of the Tour de France from Malemort to Ussel.

After a scorching start on rolling roads in the Massif Central, Alex attacked out of the ashes of the peloton on the slopes of the Suc au May to form a 15-rider group almost 60 kilometers into the stage. Alex and his breakmates drove into the furnace-like air, forcing their way ahead while the peloton chased hard behind. On Mont Bessou, a brutal kicker with 25 kilometers to go, Mathieu van der Poel took off and split the break. Over the top, only Alex, Tom Pidcock, Tobias Halland Johannessen, and Van der Poel were left. They hammered all the way to the line and sprinted it out for the win.

Although Alex finished fourth, he was very happy with his performance on the toughest day of the Tour so far. Matching classics specialists on their own terrain bodes very well for the climbing stages ahead, where Alex will be in the mountains he loves.

"It was full-gas all day. Really, there was never a moment to breathe. When I got into the break, I completely forgot – I think everyone did, with the heat – that when you make a big effort like this, you need time to recover. I actually felt really good. I felt like I was suffering, but the legs were pushing, so I'm happy the break went to the line. But in the end, these three guys with me were just stronger. I can't do better than that.

"I prepared myself mentally for about one minute full-gas on that last climb. I made it across with the three guys, and then we all knew we had to collaborate to the line, otherwise they'd catch us. So no one tried to attack. I knew if I went on the flat I would go nowhere.

"In the finale, I looked around at who was with me and I was like, 'What am I doing here?' I'm happy with the shape, and I think I did my best today." – Alex Baudin

"It was just crazy, to be honest – when you see a peloton as small as it was over some of those climbs, you know it was full gas. The start was super hot, full gas from kilometer zero, and then sprinting over those climbs trying to get into the breakaway. It was a proper attritional day. Our goal is just that every breakaway that makes it to the line, we've got to be represented, and we managed to do that today. I think we can be happy. It's a tough job to always be in it." – Ben Healy

"We knew it was going to be a hard day. The only thing that really surprised me was the pace the GC teams set behind the breakaway. The break never got more than about a minute and 20 seconds, so they were under pressure the whole day. I think that had a big impact on Alex's breakaway. They had to keep pushing the entire time, all the way to the finish, because the teams behind never really let them breathe.

"Alex's performance was an 11 out of 10. And the same goes for the whole team. Everyone is doing exactly what we set out to do. The riders are going well. They're working together, they're working for each other, and they're working for the team. We're doing what we promised ourselves we would do, and that's all we can ask. I can't predict the future, but the only way to maximize what we can get out of the Tour de France is by continuing to do exactly what we're doing – working together, supporting each other, focusing on the right objectives, and racing smart.

"Whether that pays off, or not at all, is something that's largely out of our hands. All we can control is how we race, and I think we're doing that really well." – Charly Wegelius, head sports director

Everyone watching on TV saw Alex match Mathieu van der Poel's attack over the top of Mont Bessou in the finale of Stage 9. That effort took 402 watts for 3 minutes and 58 seconds. What TV audiences likely missed were the efforts Alex made to get into the break. When the move went, our French climber pushed 428 watts for eight minutes to make it stick. During an earlier attack, he did 453 watts for six minutes. Once the break went clear, the pace never let up, as they drove it to stay in front. Alex's normalized power for his time in the break was 350 watts and he spent 50 minutes of the stage over 390 watts.

Max Walker turned 25 today. Our Manx Tour rookie spent his birthday collecting bottles and helping his teammates get to the front in the sweltering French heat. When he got back to the bus, there were birthday presents waiting for him, though. Our marketing director Johannes found him his favorite candy and a Playmobil mountain biker.

Owen and Chris made Max a massive Basque cheesecake to share with his teammates for his birthday. This classic recipe from sports director Juanma Garate's homeland on the Atlantic coast of Spain and France is soft and custardy inside with a crisp, burnt caramel exterior. It's a great treat to enjoy after a hard day on the bike before the Tour's first rest day.

Ingredients:

500 g mascarpone

100 g full-fat cream cheese

120 g double cream

50 g kefir

140 g caster sugar

3 large eggs

15 g plain flour

1 tsp vanilla paste

¼ tsp fine salt

Fresh berries

Method:

Mix the mascarpone, cream cheese, and sugar until smooth.

Add the eggs one at a time.

Mix in the cream, kefir, vanilla, and salt.

Sift in the flour and mix until fully incorporated.

Cover and refrigerate the batter overnight (or at least 12 hours).

The next day, let it sit at room temperature for 30 to 45 minutes.

Pour into a parchment-lined 20-centimeter tin.

Bake at 220 C for 25 to 30 minutes, until deeply caramelized on top with a pronounced wobble in the center.

Cool completely, then chill for at least six hours before serving.

Serve with fresh berries.

With nine short, hard climbs en route, Stage 9 was a day for the breakaway at the Tour de France. Half of the peloton wanted to escape the peloton's folds and make it into the échappée. That image is where the French word for breakaway got its start. Old French turned the Latin ex cappa into eschaper. A cappa was a hooded cloak. The prefix exmeans out, so to eschaper was to emerge out of a cloak. The English words escape and escapade come from the same root. In modern French eschaper becomes échapper. Turned into the noun, which in cycling we use to refer to the breakaway, it becomes échappée – the thing that escaped.