Stage 13: Dole → Belfort : Mauro Schmid plays the spoiler, and 258 ballots come up empty on the winner

From Dole to Belfort over 205 km of Jura hills, the breakaway did the job all the way. Mauro Schmid, opportunistic Swiss puncher, outsprinted Harold Tejada and Tom Pidcock in a small group to secure a victory that nobody in the contest had written down on their ballot. Zero out of 258 : a collective blank. Pogacar, meanwhile, quietly keeps his yellow jersey without anyone trying to test his legs.

On the 7 bets of the day, points were won elsewhere. 196 players out of 258 had guessed right on the type of finish (small group sprint), and 190 had bet that the yellow wouldn't change hands : the two "safe bet" predictions of the day. The breakaway going all the way? Only 70 had sensed it against the grain, and that's where a nice group stands out: Bra, YannisMol, jongooss, mardyl, Simon Horn, Jor, LucaHesper, HugoDomestique, Comet, Fred_du_59, sven_h and LucasBraquets had all ticked "yes" when the majority bet on the peloton. Hats off. And for the best French or Belgian rider of the day : Maxim Van Gils, discreet but there : only two players had called it: Elio and OlivierWallo, the only two to grab points on this ultra-selective bet (2 out of 258, that's surgical). As for the winner's nationality, just one player out of 257 ticked "other" : and we'd love to shake their hand.

In today's standings, Stéph takes it with 26 points on this stage, a nice performance that gives him a climb of 5 places to settle in 7th overall (293 pts). Gigi and JonaVerme9 follow with 21 points each, and Gigi even signs the best climb of the day: +22 places to land in 162nd position : by far the most spectacular jump of the day. Benjamin, fifi and Hubogoss complete the day's top with 18 points each.

maxime patin remains supreme at the top of the standings with 414 points : it's his 10th stage finished in the lead of the contest, and the gap with Hubogoss (2nd, 410 pts) remains microscopic: just 4 points. The battle at the top continues to turn heads. Mich_Mich holds 3rd place (368 pts), far behind but solid. Simon Horn confirms his good form with +8 places (22nd, 245 pts). On the other hand, 73 players came back empty-handed from Belfort : a nice group that deserves a herbal tea and a night of reflection before the next bets.