Tour de France 2023 Stage 12 recap: Ion Izagirre makes it two for Cofidis in pulsating stage

The yellow-white jersey group is getting larger and larger now, and it includes: Jonas Vingagaard, Wout van Aert and Wilco Kelderman (Jumbo-Visma), Tadej Pogacar, Marc Soler and Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates), Carlos Rodriguez and Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers), David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ), Dries Devenyns (Soudal-QuickStep), Jai Hindley (Bora-hansgrohe), Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) and Simon Yates (Jayco-AlUla).

The former double world champion will be kicking himself for not making his move at the same time as compatriot Pinot, for the latter managed to bridge over with apparent ease while he is still grappling 30 seconds down. Alaphilippe at least has Stuyven with him - but the duo is not making any in-roads and are very much in no-man's land. The GC group is one minute down now as things settle a little over these rolling roads ahead of the intermediate sprint.

Julian Alaphilippe (Soudal-QuickStep) and Jasper Stuyven (Lidl-Trek) are closing in on a move of 13 riders that has finally come together after a bonkers opening two hours of racing. The leaders are: Tiesj Benoot (Jumbo-Visma), Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ), Andrey Amador (EF Education-EasyPost), Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Guillaume Martin and Ion Izagirre (Cofidis), Ruben Guerreiro and Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar), Dylan Teuns (Israel-PremierTech), Victor Campenaerts (Lotto Dstny), Tobias Johannessen (Uno-X) and Mathieu Burgaudeau (TotalEnergies).

Well, well, well... as if this stage couldn't get any crazier, we've just seen Thibaut Pinot attack from a yellow-white jersey "peloton" of just 12 riders! The Frenchman from Groupama-FDJ manages to bridge over to the lead group, which is now around 11 strong after the counter attackers joined the initial trio. Just when we think it's starting to settle - as more riders join the GC group - Julian Alaphilippe puts in an attack of his own in a bid to join Pinot and the others up the road.

Campenarts, Van der Poel, Stuyven and Wright bridge over to the pursing trio - but they have the yellow jersey group right on their heels. As a result, the leading trio see their gap comes down to 12 seconds.

Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar), Andrey Amador (EF Education-EasyPost) and Ion Izagirre (Cofidis) have zipped clear and are 10 seconds down on the leading trio of Tiejs Benoot (Jumbo-Visma), Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) and Dylan Teuns (Israel-PremierTech). The yellow jersey group - which does include both Yates brother, despite earlier reports to the contrary - is 30 seconds down, and the polka dot jersey group four minutes back.

The Dane has enjoyed the two Belgians on this fast, twisting descent. They have just eight seconds on the yellow-white jersey group. There has been no let-up since the start. We're almost 70km in and a proper breakaway has yet to form. And there could be some big GC casualties for those who are in the second peloton.

Meanwhile, the Philipsen group is seven minutes in arrears and Caleb Ewan is over 11 minutes behind and staring down the barrel of elimination at this rate...

We're hearing conflicting reports of the Yates brothers. We thought they had rejoined the yellow jersey group but we're now hearing that they're still in the polka dot jersey group, which is now 2'40" down. They're not the only ones: Tom Pidcock is there as well. Don't take this for gospel, though. I will try to confirm.

Belgians Dylan Teuns and Tiejs Benoot, meanwhile, are the latest duo to attack and open up a gap over the yellow jersey group. Once again, Jumbo involved - they have already has Van Aert and Kelderman in moves, so clearly are going for the disruption tactics today.

Perhaps the yellow jersey just wants to eliminate any chance of his big rival getting any headway, so that the bonus seconds can be taken out of the equation for the last climb? You'd think, though, that he would let a breakaway form then - rather than chasing everything down himself... Very confusing. Here he is at the start of today's stage...

This is chaos. Kelderman is clear with Skjelmose, while the yellow and white jerseys are in a small spliter group chasing off the front of the main pack. There's very little reason for Vingegaard to be closing all these moves alone - and it's a dig from Pogacar's UAE team-mate Marc Soler that provokes the Dane into his latest counter. Soler goes clear nevertheless and joins the two others around five seconds off the front.

Danish champion Mattias Skjelmose clearly fancies his chances today because he's just launched his umpteenth attack. This time he's joined by Wilco Kelderman who, oddly, is not riding with his team-mate, the yellow jersey, and is rather trying his luck off the front. With Kelderman and Van Aert going on the attack so much today, and Kuss off the back, Vingegaard has been closing many moves himself - each time with Pogacar stuck to his rear wheel.

The Belgian is caught by a large cluster of riders that have just crept off the front of the yellow jersey group. Fred Wright is there but it's Anthony Turgis who makes the first move and puts in a dig for TotalEnergies. Surely we'll see a breakaway form at some point? It's been incessant attacks and survival of the fittest today - right since the outset.

The Belgian now has 18 seconds on the yellow-white jersey group, 1'25" over a group that includes Ben O'Connor and Louis Meintjes, 1'35" over the Powless polka dot jersey group, and then over four minutes clear of the Philipsen green jersey gruppetto.

Van Aert is enjoying a fast downhill segment that precedes two uncategorised climbs before an even longer downhill section ahead of the lumpy valley roads where we will find the intermediate sprint.

I guess this is what you call trying to "sneak" into the breakaway, eh?

Skjelmose - who has been ever present since the start - has another dig, which is followed by a sustained pull from Dries Devenyns of Soudal-QuickStep. Victor Campenaerts then takes is up for a while before Van Aert then decides enough is enough and blasts clear. Could this be the winning move? Remember, Vingegaard has already lost team-mate Sepp Kuss, who is currently in the polka dot jersey group 1'20" back.

The Italian zips clear of Van Aert and Martinez on the front to take the maximum 2pts over the summit, with Martinez of Ineos the next over ahead of the Belgian all-rounder. The gap back to the polka dot jersey group - which contains the Yates brothers - is now one minute, with the green jersey group three minutes back.

CORRECTION: We're hearing that both Yates brothers managed to bridge over and join the yellow jersey group on that last climb. That will be a relief for their top 10 prospects.

Many riders bridge over to the leading trio including the likes of Skjelmose, Van Aert, Neilands and even Tom Pidcock. That doesn't provoke a response from the yellow jersey, who has the white jersey of Tadej Pogacar in his wheel. But once Jai Hindley makes his move, Jonas Vingegaard is forced to react. Bonkers riding this - so many attacks, counters and rolling of the dice.

After a long uphill introductory section, we're finally onto the Cat.3 Col des Ecorbans (2.1km at 6.9%). Fraile and Jorgenson have joined Burgaudeau on the front with a gap of around eight seconds over the first peloton.

The second peloton is 35 seconds down and includes both Yates brothers, Sepp Kuss, the polka dot jersey Neilson Powless, and Egan Bernal - amongst others. So, some big names have missed out.

It's fast and frantic as we hit the apron to the second climb - and there's been a large split in the peloton with many riders, including the polka dot jersey, caught out. This in addition to a third peloton already formed further back around the green jersey of Philipsen. Tiesj Benoot (Jumbo-Visma) put in a dig which provoked a reaction from Fraile and Alaphilippe - and now it's Mathieu Burgaudeau of TotalEnergies who is having a pop.

The Spaniard David de le Cruz is unable to continue after his crash and he will become the third Astana Qazaqstan rider - after Luis Leon Sanchez and Mark Cavendish - to withdraw. De la Cruz has already been put in an ambulance. Let's hope he's okay but it looked like a collarbone fracture.