Key events1h agoIntermediate sprint result4h agoRacing on Tour de France stage eight4h agoNeutralised rollout begins5h agoPreamble5.5km to go: Over on X, the legendary Thomas de Gendt also thought Slock had the win in the bag … But it looks like the game is up. Massive effort from Slock though.6.5km to go: It’s 40sec now. “He’s starting to suffer. The fatigue is starting to hit,” says Kelly on commentary. And Slock is now in sight of the chasing bunch on a long, sweeping right-hand bend leading into Bergerac …8km to go: The gap falls to 52sec.9.5km to go: A minute the gap. The chase behind is much more determined now. A bit of panic is setting in.Slock gets out of his seat to try and keep the power up … he looks like he’s running out of steam?10.5km to go: The gap is 1min 09sec.More teams are moving up and helping the chase … and the gap is down to 1min 06sec.12km to go: “Slocky” takes two bottles from a motorbike alongside. One of them, he just empties over his head.“We know it could change very quickly,” Rob Hatch correctly observes. But Slock is going to really have to blow up not to win this, at this stage?13km to go: Slock pounds on alone, alongside a neutral service car or two. The gap is still 1min 14sec! He is stronger than a lot of the sprinters’ teams thought.Liam Slock. Photograph: Dario Belingheri/Getty Images14km to go: NSN have joined the chase, working for Biniam Girmay.There is a long line of Alpecin-Premier Tech riders prominent, with Soudal-Quick Step there too. As you’d expect.15km to go: Slock takes a bottle. The gap is 1min 16sec. He is looking very, very good.16km to go: Blythe says Lidl-Trek aren’t interested in chasing, because a Slock win doesn’t hurt Pedersen’s green jersey hopes … Equally Decathlon CMA CGM, whose priority is Paul Seixas, don’t have massive motivation to chase.17km to go: “I’m confused why these sprint teams aren’t putting more riders up to chase,” says Blythe.After winning yesterday, Merlier made a very pointed comment about his perception that only Alpecin-Premier Tech and Soudal-Quick Step had worked to control the break. Is the same happening today?19km to go: Slock, the lone leader, is followed closely by a race commissaires’ car and a phalanx of motorbikes. What a win this would be for Lotto–Intermarché!20km to go: Slock powers on alone. He’s riding smoothly, maybe losing a little bit of form due to the inevitable tiredness. The gap isn’t moving, in fact, it’s grown slightly to 1min 24sec.22km to go: “The gap at the moment is not really budging,” says Rob Hatch.“We’ll see at 10km to go what the gap is,” says Kelly. “Slock will start feeling the effects, other teams will start panicking. The real test will come in the next 10km.”24km to go: As they pursue the escapees, the bunch is strung out. Otruba is about to be caught. Therefore, it’s about to be one escapee, and realistically, he’s not going to make it.The peloton is chasing down Liam Slock. Photograph: Loïc Venance/AFP/Getty Images24km to go: The gap between Slock and bunch is 1min 22sec. I’m going to say he’s got a live chance here. My Velogames rivals are running scared.28km to go: Adam Blythe, on commentary, thinks Kooij will win today. He adds that the peloton may have given Slock a little bit too much room, based on the current situation.29km to go: “It will be super-fast,” Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM) said earlier, of today’s sprint finish. “We need to be in front there.”And what of his Tour de France debut?“So far we are enjoying it. Good results so far, everyone’s feeling good, we’re just looking forward to every day of racing.”Olav Kooij. Photograph: Jasper Jacobs/Belga/Shutterstock32km to go: Slock has looked extremely strong, though, so you never know …He has 27sec on Otruba now and is riding strongly.34km to go: Slock’s lone attack is surely doomed? But you have to be in it to win it. He’s bought a ticket for the lottery, and other assorted cliches, can be applied.Jakub Otruba (right) and Liam Slock (centre) ride past a fan with unfeasibly large muscles. Photograph: Stéphanie Lecocq/Reuters36km to go: Slock is out front alone. He has 13sec on Otruba. Guernalec is another 24sec back. The peloton is 1min 34sec off the pace of Slock …37km to go: A dangerous group containing riders from EF Education and Uno X-Mobility briefly gapped the bunch on the climb. But it was all shut down swiftly.39.5km to go: A timely mention by commentator, Rob Hatch, for Ramunas Navardauskas, who won in Bergerac in 2014. Navardauskas is a helluva bike rider and a lovely guy too.40km to go: This climb is 2.2km long with an average 5.3% gradient.Back down the road, EF Education have attacked! A large group has broken away from the main bunch …41km to go: The break has splintered on the Côte du Buisson-de-Cadouin. Otruba leads the way, Slock on his wheel, Guernalec dropped.43km to go: Regarding today’s finish in Bergerac: there is a big right-hand turn with 500m to go. There is certain to be a huge fight for position before that.44km to go: The Côte du Buisson-de-Cadouin, the second category-four climb of the day, is imminent.47km to go: It’s good to see Grana Padano cheese being heavily advertised during TNT Sport’s Tour coverage. But who will be the big cheese among the sprinters in Bergerac later?Grand Padano cheese. Photograph: foodfolio/Alamy53km to go: Pedersen went early for the intermediate. Very early. Philipsen and Kanter duly punished him.Good signs for Philipsen’s legs for the final sprint today, but then again, Merlier wasn’t interested in properly going for it.Max Kanter of XDS-Astana Team was on the naughty step, as far as Mads Pedersen was concerned, after the intermediate sprint. Photograph: Pool Luca Bettini/Belga/ShutterstockIntermediate sprint result1) Otruba