The start of the stage at Redon was marked by a short moment of protest from the peloton.
The riders set foot on the ground for a minute just after the actual start.
They are calling for a relaxation of the 3 km rule, which allows a runner who fell in the last 3,000 meters to be classified at the same time as the winners.
This request Monday was not granted while the falls animated the arrival of the day in Pontivy.
Subsequently, the stage was calm, marked by a long breakaway from Pierre-Luc Perichon (Cofidis) and the Belgian Brent Van Moer (Lotto Soudal). The latter tried his luck on his own at 13 km from the finish by giving up company to his companion who got up to be caught. Van Moer was one minute ahead, 10 km from the line. The peloton gave him a chance, for a long time. The sprinters, to whom the stage seemed promised, waited for the last 5 kilometers to start the machine. Too late? On the wide avenues of Fougères, the snake on wheels which has not fallen has embarked on a terrible chase. The man alone was picked up a few hundred meters from the finish, in the last kilometer. The law of the peloton is ruthless and ruthless.The stage was played out with a massive sprint won by Mark Cavendish who won at Fougères as in 2015.