Dutchman Robert Gesink of Lotto Jumbo rode with grit and determination to win on the Aubisque today. A large, gangly frame didn't deter him from sticking it out on the long climb to the finish.

**Robert Gesink rode a determined race today**

Simon Yates rode a blinder of a race with the help of his Orica Bike Exchange team mates who had put 3 men in the breakaway. Yates used them brilliantly to bridge the gap between the peloton and the front end of the race. This is such a tight team who display great teamwork and work hard for each other. It looked, at one stage, as if Yates was going to go the whole way but he fell 39 seconds shorts of Gesink in the end.

**Fantastic ride from Yates moves him to fourth**

Meanwhile, further down the mountain, a battle royal raged on between Quintana, Froome and Contador as the little Colombian punched and counter punched in a classic fight to distance himself from the Briton. Contador dropped behind them in the closing km, but the other two came in together. Froome seems content with the time gap between him and Quintana at the moment, confident that he can make it up in the time trial.

A fantastic day on this imperious mountain that has delivered some truly exciting bike racing again. Yates's effort moves him up to fourth in the GC, 16 seconds behind Chaves, while Quintana holds red with only 54 seconds on Froome.