American champion Quinn Simmons of Lidl-Trek won stage four of the Tour Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes on Wednesday when a breakaway group made it home just ahead of a charging peloton at the thermal spa resort village of Montrond-les-Bains.
With his long red hair and beard and decked out in his stars and stripes US road champion jersey, Simmons has been a regular and easily recognisable feature in breakaway attempts, and this was his first win in France and third at World Tour level.
"You never know when your last chance to win in the national jersey is, you have to earn it back every year, and I'm so proud to race in it," said Simmons, whose escapes on the Tour de France last year brought him to public attention.
The 25-year-old's efforts ended in a stage win after the peloton were bamboozled by a prolonged acceleration in the escape party who hit high speeds over the final kilometres.
🚴♂️💨🚴♂️💨💨
— Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (@tourauverhalpes) June 10, 2026
Course poursuite à Montrond-les-Bains !
⏪ Revivez le final de l’étape 4
A thrilling chase all the way to Montrond-les-Bains!
⏪ Relive the thrilling finale of Stage 4!#TourAuvergneRhoneAlpes pic.twitter.com/eBKYrKJKI8
"I've never won a sprint before, so that's pretty cool," said Simmons, who described the win as payback for his efforts training in Colorado.
Also part of the break that formed on the second of six modest climbs along the 167km route was Finn Fisher-Black of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, who finished second, and third-placed Matteo Vercher of TotalEnergies.
Belgian Wout Van Aert won the sprint behind the break for fourth, just a few seconds adrift, while the overall leader's yellow jersey remains with Frenchman Alex Baudin of EF Education-EasyPost.
Ineos Grenadiers pair Kevin Vauquelin and Oscar Onley are second and third at 12sec, while pre-race favourite Paul Seixas is 10th at 1min.
The race formerly known as the Criterium du Dauphine is one of the final stage events before the Tour de France and a major form indicator for the Grand Boucle in July.
Thursday's stage five is a relatively flat ride but at 195.8km is the longest on the eight-day race that culminates with a brutal Sunday finale over four giant peaks.
On the weekend, the race will end up the Plateau de Solaison in the French Alps, where a 11.3 kilometres climb at an average gradient of nine per cent awaits any pretender to the title.