Nine kilometers after the start, Daniel Oss (BMC) and Bartosz Huzarski (TNE) were able to pull away . They were soon one minute behind the peloton and a little later were overtaken by 18 drivers in a chasing group. So now 20 drivers were at the top, including Mikel Nieve (SKY), Lars Boom (BEL), Sylvain Chavanel (IAM) and Thomas Voeckler (EUC). The peloton, which was about two and a half minutes behind, was led by the Astana team. Huzarski won the first mountain classification (2 points). The gap between the 20 leaders was around 3:30 minutes, with Astana still setting the pace in the field. Lars Boom won the second mountain classification in the third category ahead of Huzarski. Bryan Coquard (EUC) won the intermediate sprint after 61 kilometers .
Next, the riders reached the climb to the Col du Tourmalet . In the breakaway group, Chavanel was initially able to pull away, but was then overtaken by Mikel Nieve and Blel Kadri (ALM). The trio drove together nine kilometers before the mountain classification, then Chavanel fell back. Nieve and Kadri drove towards the summit alone. In the meantime, the first well-placed drivers in the main field fell behind: Jurgen Van Den Broeck , Tony Gallopin (LTB) and Richie Porte (SKY) could no longer follow the pace of the remaining favorites. The chasing group also disintegrated on the climb: Juri Trofimow (KAT), Huzarski and Alessandro De Marchi (CAN) were the direct chasers 45 seconds behind, behind Nieve and Kadri .
Blel Kadri was the first to cross the Col du Tourmalet, with which he received the Jacques Goddet souvenir endowed with 5000 euros , making him the fourth Frenchman in a row to win this special tour prize after Christophe Moreau in 2010. Nieve finished second, both were followed by six drivers from the former leading group, about 1:30 minutes behind. On the descent from the Tourmalet, Alejandro Valverde (MOV) attacked overall leader Nibali and the other favorites, for a while he was about 20 seconds ahead with two team-mates. Nibali's Astana team was able to repel the attack and closed the gap to the Spaniard.
Kadri and Nieve were around 20 kilometers from the finish with 1:20 minutes ahead of the pursuers and 2:30 minutes ahead of the group around Nibali. José Joaquín Rojas Gil was disqualified by the tour management because he had been in the slipstream of an escort vehicle for a long time on the descent. On the last climb to Hautacam , Nieve shook Kadri off and set off on her own in the direction of the stage destination. Nibali had accelerated the pace in the favorite group with his teammates, so that the drivers of the chasing group were soon caught up.
An attack by Christopher Horner (LAM) could only be countered by Vincenzo Nibali, who shook off the American around ten kilometers from the summit and pursued Mikel Nieve, who was still in the lead. He reached it eight kilometers from the finish and drove right past it. Rafał Majka (TCS) left the group of favorites to defend his polka dot jersey against Nibali. According to the rules of the tour, the winner of the Hors Catégorie mountain arrivals receives 50 points for the mountain classification, so Majka had to reach at least sixth place and 20 points in order to continue to wear the dotted jersey.
Six kilometers from the finish, Thibaut Pinot (FDJ) tried to distance his competitors. Only Jean-Christophe Péraud (ALM) and Tejay van Garderen (BMC) could follow him. The other favorites, including Valverde, Romain Bardet (ALM), Bauke Mollema and Laurens ten Dam (BEL) lost noticeably to ground to Pinot and also Nibali, who is four kilometers from the finish about 50 seconds before Majka, one minute before Péraud, Pinot and van Garderen and 1:30 minutes ahead of the group around Valverde and Mollema. Majka was overtaken by the Pinot group a little later, but even the four of them could not endanger Vincenzo Nibali's fourth day win at the 2014 Tour. Nibali crossed the finish line 1:10 minutes ahead of Pinot. Majka finished third and defended the jersey of the best in the mountains. Bardet, Mollema and Valverde each lost around two minutes to the Italian, who was now ahead of the French Pinot and Péraud by over seven minutes in the overall standings.
Heinrich Haussler (IAM): Task during the stage
