Mark Cavendish was back in green again on Wednesdsay night after producing yet another withering display of speed to dismiss his chief rivals - Thor Hushovd and Tyler Farrar - on a demanding uphill finish in Saint Fargeau that required every last ounce of his new found endurance.
There were no premeditated celebrations this time - such as the mimicking of a mobile phone call or polishing of his green sunglasses that had marked previous wins - only heartfelt joy and relief at one of the best wins of his career that brings his dream of winning the green jersey on the Champs Elysees next Sunday signficantly closer.
His win on Wednesday - his fourth on the 2009 tour thus far - also saw him draw level with Barry Hoban as the most successful British Tour rider of all time with eight stage wins in total. Hoban accumulated those in the course of 12 tours, Cavendish has equalled him in just two and half with all eight wins coming in the last 13 months. Add in six stage wins in the Giro and you have an orgy of winning that big Tour riding has not seen since the days of Eddie Merckx.
Cavendish had to dig deep this time though: both Farrar, who finished second, and Hushovd who trailed off in fifth put him under pressure and tried to squeeze the Columbia rider for space which forced him to go earlier than he possibly would consider ideal. Ultimately it made no differnce. Cavendish's Columbia lead-out men eased his passage expertly and when the moment came he just went into his trademark hunched position, head down, backside up and hit the pedals harder than ever.
"It was a hard finish uphill but we knew what we had to do," said Cavendish afterwards.
"We had to leave it late and it showed how great the lads are that they could adapt to different situations.
"There's only one more stage win that matters for me now, I think you know which one that"
Cavendish was presumably referring to the final day in Paris a week on Sunday - always a sprinters fest - but after the excitement of this latest win dies down at the team's evening meal he will know that there is much work to be done before then. Hushovd, versatle and strong, is just six points behind and Friday's run to Vittel and Saturday's stage from Colmar to Besancon are mixed terrain rides that could end in sprint finishes. Promising Hushovd territory but also an opportunity for Cavendish to consolidate his position.
Its going to be a fascinating duel and of course no matter who comes on top this week there is the small matter of negotiating the Alps within the cut off time and avoiding any crashes and accidents that could end their Tour peramturely.
A quiet day for the GC meanwhile resulted in no movement except for the welcome return of Brad Wiggins to fifth place before the stage even started. He and Levi Leipheimer were among a large gorup of riders docked 15 seconds on Tuesday after they were held up by a crash on the approach to Issoudun. It seemed a harsh call at the time and the Tour jury, having slept on it, did the decent thing and gave all concerned the same time as the bunch.
Tour de France details
Stage 11: 192km, Vatan to Saint-Fargeau:
1. Mark Cavendish (Britain - Columbia-HTC) 4 hours 17 minutes 55 seconds, 2. Tyler Farrar (US - Garmin-Slipstream) s.t., 3. Yauheni Hutarovich (Belarus - Francaise des Jeux) s.t., 4. Oscar Freire (Spain - Rabobank) s.t., 5. Thor Hushovd (Norway - Cervelo) s.t., 6. Leonardo Duque (Colombia - Cofidis) s.t., 7. Gerald Ciolek (Germany - Milram) s.t., 8. Lloyd Mondory (France - AG2R-La Mondiale) s.t., 9. William Bonnet (France - Bbox Bouygues Telecom) s.t., 10. Nicolai Trussov (Russia - Katusha) s.t.
Overall standings
1. Rinaldo Nocentini (Italy - AG2R-La Mondiale) 43 hours, 28 minutes, 59 seconds, 2. Alberto Contador (Spain - Astana) 6secs, 3. Lance Armstrong (US - Astana) 8secs, 4. Levi Leipheimer (US - Astana) 39secs, 5. Bradley Wiggins (Britain - Garmin-Slipstream) 46secs, 6. Andreas Kloeden (Germany - Astana) 54secs, 7. Tony Martin (Germany - Columbia-HTC) 1min, 8. Christian Vande Velde (US - Garmin-Slipstream) 1min 24 secs, 9. Andy Schleck (Luxembourg - Saxo Bank) 1min 49secs, 10. Vincenzo Nibali (Italy - Liquigas 1min 54secs.
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