The first uphill finish at this year's Lloyds Tour of Britain Men delivered a classic on stage four of the race, with Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ) winning atop the summit of Burton Dassett Hills Country Park after a perfectly timed attack with 200m to go.

The 22-year-old, widely recognised as one of the most promising French riders to emerge in recent years, finished just ahead of compatriot Julian Alaphilippe (Tudor Pro Cycling) at the finish line, with Edoardo Zambanini (Bahrain-Victorious) leading the next group of riders home, two seconds behind.

The stage win catapulted Grégoire into the Green jersey, with overnight race leader Matthew Brennan (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) dropping to second overall after losing ground on the final of three ascents to the summit of Burton Dassett.

Brennan now sits second overall, two seconds adrift of Grégoire, but with the race set for two more blockbuster days in Wales, the 2025 Lloyds Tour of Britain Men rests on a knife-edge with 29 riders within 17 seconds of Grégoire's overall lead.

The Frenchman was at his magnificent best on the final 1.5km climb to the line, after his teammates ensured they positioned their leader towards the front as UAE Team Emirates XRG and INEOS Grenadiers stretched the peloton on the searing gradients.

British national road champion Sam Watson (INEOS Grenadiers) surged with 600m remaining, but he was caught by a select group including Grégoire, the swashbuckling Alaphilippe, and double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step).

Gregoire takes to the podium at Burton Dassett (image via SWPix.com)

On the final right-hand corner, Grégoire broke from the pack and overtook Watson on the British rider's left. Alaphilippe took the inside line and immediately pursued Grégoire, but he couldn't close the gap as the two maintained a slight lead before the finish.

In the end, Grégoire held on to win, with his impressive 2025 season continuing after a stage win in the Tour de Suisse and victory in the Faun-Ardèche Classic earlier this year.

"It's incredible, I'm really happy with this victory, I knew this climb could be good for me, but it wasn't easy to get the victory, the team did an amazing job throughout the day, and we deserve this, so I'm really happy for me and the team," Grégoire said at the finish.

"It wasn't an easy stage. Tomorrow is another day, tomorrow is harder than today, so we will see tomorrow, but I will try to fight for this victory. The atmosphere in the final climb was really good, really happy to win in front of the British crowd," he added.

Early break packs a punch

The quaint market town of Atherstone in North Warwickshire played host to the start of stage four of the Lloyds Tour of Britain Men, and with sunny skies and large crowds greeting the pro peloton, spirits were high as the race shifted from the sprint stages to the more challenging terrain that would shape the final GC at this year's race.

On the menu, six categorised climbs, including three ascents of Burton Dasset Hills Country Park.

The early break of Rory Townsend (Q36.5 Pro Cycling), Josh Golliker (Great Britain), Cedric Beullens (Lotto) and Victor Vercouillie (Team Flanders - Baloise) worked well to establish a lead that almost stretched to five minutes as the race dipped south towards the intermediate sprint at Cubbington.

A combination of Team Picnic-PostNL, Soudal Quick-Step, and Tudor Pro Cycling patrolled the front of the peloton during the opening hours of the race, ensuring that the leading quartet were kept in check, and with 85km to go, the gap had been reduced to 2:46.

Vercouillie was on a mission to hoover up King of the Mountains points, and the 22-year-old, who won a KOM title at Etoile de Bessèges - Tour du Gard earlier this year, snaffled up maximum points at Friz Hill, Fant Hill, Sun Rising Hill and the first ascent of Burton Dassett Hills Country Park to eventually take over the classification.

Dassett decider

The finishing circuit, with the three ascents of Burton Dassett, was always going to determine the eventual outcome of the stage, and on the first lap, Evenepoel lit up the race with a powerful attack towards the summit of the climb.

AJ August (INEOS Grenadiers), Bauke Mollema (Lidl-Trek), and Pavel Sivakov (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) were able to latch onto the Belgian's coattails, and the foursome caught the day's early break on the shallow descent that followed, with around 20km remaining.

Although the new lead group of eight was packed with world-class talent, there was still far too much firepower in the chase group, and with 16km to go, they were brought back by a determined Picnic PostNL and Bahrain Victorious.

There was a huge turn out from locals at Burton Dassett for the finish (image via SWPix.com)

The second ascent of Burton Dassett proved to be a cagey affair, with UAE Team Emirates-XRG setting a pace that kept their rivals in check, but over the top of the climb, Andreas Leknessund (UNO-X Mobility) put in a well-timed attack that seemed to catch the peloton off-guard with just under 10km remaining.

The Norwegian was eventually caught by a group including former British national champion Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step), but with just one climb remaining, the peloton regrouped once more for one final effort.

UAE Team Emirates-XRG set the pace on the early slopes before Watson took control with 600m to go. However, as the gradient started to bite, it was Grégoire who had the legs and the timing to take the stage by the scruff of the neck and claim the victory.

For full results and standings from the Lloyds Tour of Britain Men, please click here.