Even the former world champion Mads Pedersen (Lidl - Trek), who was in a much better position this time, was unable to hold off the Belgian. From behind the Dane's wheel, the 32-year-old shot past all his rivals. Meanwhile, Pedersen also had to let Emilien Jeannière (Team TotalEnergies) and Hugo Page (Intermarché - Wanty) pass him. At least the latter was caught on paper, as Page was placed at the back of the group by the jury due to an irregular sprint. Merlier, on the other hand, celebrated his sixth win of the season just as confidently as his fifth the day before.
In a way, it was a special one for Merlier. "I think it's the first time I've won in a leader's jersey," he said happily in the winner's interview, adding: "We had to control the group ourselves, then Lidl-Trek helped later on. That was pretty annoying, because the breakaways played with us a bit."
Two thirds of the breakaways were the same as the day before. The man in the mountain jersey Alexandre Delettre (TotalEnergies) and Samuel Fernandez (Caja Rural - Seguros) were supported this time by Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X Mobility). The Norwegian proved to be the toughest nut to crack, because after the trio was almost caught, he continued as a soloist 50 kilometres before the finish and was only caught on the home straight.
Merlier remains in the yellow jersey after his victory. He also continues to lead the points classification. Delettre defended the red points. The team time trial is scheduled for tomorrow, which should at least shake up the overall classification.
Paris-Nice 2025 - Results of the 2nd stage
Stage 2: Montesson - Bellegarde
Paris-Nice 2025: Stage 2, Montesson - Bellegarde
| Rnk. | Riders | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soudal Quick-Step | 04:11:29 |
| 2 | TotalEnergies | +00:00:00 |
| 3 | Lidl - Trek | +00:00:00 |
| 4 | Uno-X Mobility | +00:00:00 |
| 5 | Alpecin - Deceuninck | +00:00:00 |
| 6 | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | +00:00:00 |
How the 2nd stage of Paris-Nice 2025 went
With rain at the start, but without Kasper Asgreen (EF Education - EasyPost), who was unable to get back on his bike due to illness, the peloton set off from Montesson to Bellegarde. There were 184 kilometres to complete. Most of it was reminiscent of the previous day, as the man in the mountain jersey Delettre set off again to extend his lead. Fernandez also accompanied him again, with Abrahamsen joining him for the first time.
Of the maximum three and a half minutes, only one was left by the middle of the race, but the main goal for the breakaway was already ticked off. The two mountain classifications of the day in the 3rd category were already waiting in the first third of the stage and were won by Delettre. With 50 kilometres to go, the Frenchman dropped back into the peloton, just like Fernandez, with his lead almost exhausted. However, Abrahamsen pushed again and gained up to one and a half minutes.
Several serious crashes make for a task
However, he also benefited from a mass crash in the peloton in which Florian Senechal (Arkéa - B&B Hotels) was hit so hard that he had to be taken away in an ambulance. Danny van Poppel (Red Bull - Bora - hansgrohe) had already abandoned earlier. He felt weak and had not reached the finish with the peloton from the previous day.
But that wasn't the end of the crash theme for the day. Because at the intermediate sprint 20 kilometres before the finish, which also represents the finale after an additional lap, there was another crash. Whilst Abrahamsen managed to stay ahead of the peloton for just under a minute, Matteo Jorgenson (Visma | Lease a Bike) secured another two seconds behind him. While he got out of the saddle at the front, Luke Durbridge (Team Jayco AlUla) and Gorka Sorarrain (Caja Rural - Seguros RGA) came in behind - like Senechal, both of them looked to have broken their collarbones and the race was over for them.
The crash had also split the peloton into several parts, with classification riders such as Joao Almeida (UAE Emirates - XRG) and Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) only rejoining the peloton a few kilometres later. But still in time.
Three kilometres before the finish, Abrahamsen was caught again. Meanwhile, he had already completed half of the seemingly endless long finishing straight. However, there was too much interest in a bunch sprint in the peloton. The sprinter teams sorted themselves out, but in the final metres it was Merlier who had the best legs again.
