Day six at Paris-Nice lived up to its billing as the Queen stage, as the seven categorised climbs over the 177km route from Nice to Madone d’Utelle ripped apart the field and set up a battle among the major contenders for the overall. In the end, Katusha's Ilnur Zakarin out-dueled Team Sky's Geraint Thomas and Sergio Heano, as well Tinkoff's Alberto Contador and BMC Racing's Richie Porte, to claim the stage win.
Overnight leader Michael Matthews (Orica-Greenedge) rode strong throughout the day but eventually succumbed on the final ascent and surrendered his leader's jersey to Thomas, who finished second on the stage.
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