Tondó was third in the race's individual time trial the next day, taking the race lead since he gained 12 seconds on Mollema.

Merckx won the short time trial in stage 8, but only gained two seconds on Altig.

Instead he finished second and gained only 12 seconds.

The Orangemen certainly did enough to lose the contest after gaining a 58-52 lead with 3 minutes 19 seconds left.

Hincapie was third, gaining two seconds that no longer mattered.

They gained 25 seconds on the field but were pulled back by the Dutch and British teams with one lap to go.

The winds, combined with a timely attack, made it so 15 riders gained 17 seconds on the rest of the field.

Tour officials awarded time bonuses after all, so Vinokourov gained 20 seconds to put him into 5th place.

He had gained 2 seconds but came three tenths behind Schumacher.