Stage 13 of the Tour de France was destined to be a bunch sprint, from the frantic first hour that finally resulted in a three-man breakaway on the 219.9km stage to Carcassonne. It was up to Mark Cavendish to finish it off and chalk his name alongside the great Eddy Merckx as the record holder for most Tour stage wins.
In the sweltering heat of the Languedoc, the peloton kept the trio under control and all seemed to be going according to plan until a violent crash sent a number of riders into a low ravine with 62km to go.
The incident spelled the end of the line for BikeExchange's Simon Yates and Lucas Hamilton, and Roger Kluge (Lotto Soudal) but Deceuninck-QuickStep regrouped despite leaving Tim Declercq behind on the ground.
The race was all together heading into the final kilometres, where a tricky series of turns threatened to spoil the Manxman's finish. Cavendish was buried in the wheels well into the last turn but, thanks to lead-out man Michael Mørkøv stretching out the pack, he was able to slip through and pounce out of the final corner to victory.
Watch the video highlights above to see how the race unfolded.
