By Oliver Brett & Ian Hughes
LATEST ACTION AS IT HAPPENS (ALL TIMES BST)
606: DEBATE
1711: After tapping into an enormous amount of power Tom Boonen comes from a long way round to take it on the line, with Oscar Freire second and Erik Zabel third.
1710: Less than a kilometre left and the pace is searing now.
1709: Two kilometers to go now. Robbie McEwen nowhere to be seen as yet.
1707: The pace is picking up and the lead is constantly changing. Erik Zabel and Oscar Freire look poised but there are plenty of potential winners in the bunch.
1706: Barloworld are trying to slip around the outside on the right of the peloton with four kilometres to go.
1703: Wiggins is caught. His day is, unfortunately, over and now it is down to the sprinters.
1700: Only 8.5 km to go now. Wiggins glances backwards and sees the chasing pack closing quickly. It must be a demoralising sight after he has spent over 190 kilometres out on his own today - and at one point he held a lead of more than 17 minutes.
1658: At the front of the peloton, the Quickstep riders begin to amass. T-Mobile and Gerolsteiner are also in a strong position.
1653: Wiggins begins the long, straight run-in to the finsh - which is 13 kilometres away. The peloton has virtually caught him now, but it has been a brave, brave effort by Wiggins.
1649: The Gerolsteiner team look to be winding up at the front of the peloton. It has already been announced that Robert Forster will be their protected rider for the sprint finish. But who else will be challenging for the stage win?
1644: The riders pass Didi the Devil - for those who do not know, Didi is a German man who every year dresses up as the devil, carries a pitch fork and cheers on the riders at every stage. What we would do without him? Anyway, the devil is in the detail, so they say, and the important details are these: Wiggins is 1:35 ahead with 17.6 kilomoeters to go. Can he pull off something absolutely astonishing?
1640: Wiggins takes a nervous look over his shoulder, redoubles his efforts and gets out of his seat. But surely he cannot maintain his lead for another 22 kilometres.
1633: The peloton can now almost see leader Wiggins. It will not be long before he is swallowed up, and the sprinters in the pack will all jostle for position. It should be an exciting finish - and a tough one to call.
1628: Only 1:30 between Wiggins and the peloton now. And there is still 29 kilometres left.
1624: Sadly, Wiggins' heroic effort looks as though it is not going to be enough. He appears to be suffering a little now. A bunch sprint finish seems a certainty.
1620: Virtual green jersey leader Tom Boonen decides not to contest the final sprint of the day, leaving Quickstep riders Steven De Jongh and Gert Steegmans to cross the line in order after Wiggins.
1616: If anyone was flagging, a thumbs up and a cheer from a rather relaxed fisherman sitting on his stool, with his rod on his lap and not a care in the world must have given them a boost. I'm not quite sure how the chilled-out fisherman mustered the energy to make his salute. Who knows how he will cope if he has to reel in a big fish. Speaking of reeling in, the peloton are catching Wiggins - his lead is now only 2:44.
1610: What looks like a strong headwind is not helping Wiggins' cause. With no-one with him to help push the pace on, it could all be about what the Briton has left in reserve.
1607: The peloton has picked up its pace. It is unlikely that the chasing group will want to leave Wiggins with an advantage of three minutes or more going into the final 20 kilometres. Milram, T-Mobile, Credit Agricole and Quickstep are keeping things moving in the peloton.
1558: With 48.8 kilometres to go, Wiggins stops to throw away his rear wheel and replace it with a new one. His lead is five minutes. It had seemed certain that he would be caught before the finish, but that is not looking so nailed-on now. And after leading the stage from the second kilometer, who would begrudge him such a gutsy victory?
1549: Sylvain Chavanel extends his lead in the polka dot jersey classification after claiming a third place finish in the second and final climb of the day, the Cote de Braneion.
1542: There is only a hair's breadth between Wiggins' wheels and the barrier as he takes a tight corner. Was it tiredness or a result of him upping his pace and pushing on?
1538: Wiggins in now attacking the second climb of the day - the 3.4 kilometre long Cote de Brancion. He is definitely building up a sweat now, and beginning to suck in air like a baby sucks a dummy.
1532: A quick spurt has increased Wiggins' lead, which now stands at 5:10. Has the peloton miscalculated?
"I remember some years ago in the tour de Swiss, a rider (Christophe Agnuletto I think) was allowed to get off the front and build a huge gap, then the peloton kind of argued amongst themselves as to whose job it was to chase."
Back to the Future on 606
1527: The result of that sprint puts Boonen back in front in the race for the green jersey. And you have to say, the colour suits him. Perhaps he wishes he could win The Masters and don golf's Green Jacket in another life.
1522: Cofidis rider Nick Nuyens has dropped behind the peloton to consult the race doctor. Meanwhile, team-mate Wiggins has crossed the line of the second intermediate sprint at Cormatin - and behind him, out of the peloton, Tom Boonen outpaces Erik Zabel to cross second and third respectively.
1515: Wiggins is now less than 5 kilometres from the second intermediate sprint. It is unlikely he will be out on his own by the time the third intermediate sprint is reached.
1511: Andreas Kloeden is looking uncomfortable, suffering with inuries and sporting a bright pink plaster on his leg. I wonder how long he will last in this year's Tour after he fractured his tailbone. Sitting on a saddle all day just cannot be helping his recovery.
1506: Ahead of two very big days in the Alps, it looks as though today's stage is all about keeping it steady. Surely a sprinit finish will determine the winner of the stage, as Wiggins is only 5:16 in front of the peloton now.
1501: Stéphane Auge appears to be the nominated water carrier for Cofidis, carrying five bottles to take his team-mates to help quench their thirst. Or maybe he is feeling seriously dehydrated!
1456: It seems inevitable that the peloton will catch Wiggins, and that a stage win for Cofidis will remain elusive. The gap is now just 6:37 and that is not nearly enough.
1450: Sad, but unsurprising, news comes in that Enrico Degano of the Barloworld team has been forced to abandon his first Tour de France. That leaves 182 riders still competing.
1444: Can Wiggins hold on? If his self belief is dropping, he needs just to look down at the Olympic ring on his finger, which is gleaming in the sun, and remind himself he is a champion.
"Do you think that Millar may have a go? He has nothing to lose but all to gain. We need some support from Wiggins and he can provide that."
nvy_368 on 606
1437: Wiggins has to hold on for a mere 96 kilometres to claim victory. Interestingly, the peoloton's pace has droped a little and there seems to have been a verbal agreement among the leaders of the chasing pack to cool their efforts to rein Wiggins in. The gap is just 8 minutes and that is clearly not so threatening to the peloton.
1433: Responding to the peloton's increasing pace, Wiggins has switched from the small chain ring to the big chain ring. Whether this push will prove decisive is hard to tell - but with his lead cut to just 8 minutes, Wiggins seems to have little choice.
1428: Barloworld rider Enrico Degano has suffered a nasty fall and looks in a very bad way. There is debris all over the road and his Tour looks to be in tatters.
1425: The peloton has almost cut the gap to Wiggins down to single figures now. There is certainly no time for the British rider to cast an admiring eye over any of the many distracting chateaux along the route. It is head down time.
1415: Well it's looking a bit dicey for Wiggins now, with his lead under 12 minutes. Remember, at its best it was 17:30. The silver lining for him is the minimal amount of climbing left in the stage. But he's still not halfway through the stage, and the peloton will surely put pressure on him now.
1407: Wiggins is about to begin a long descent as the route bends southwards through some of the finest vineyards in the world, let alone Burgundy. His lead is 14 minutes, not as big as it has been at its best, but still pretty healthy.
1401: Leading teams, like Quick Step and CSC, are finally getting organised - sending individual riders to the front of the peloton in a bid to eat into Wiggins's lead.
"I can see Wiggins holding on because I don't think anyone in the peloton will want to be going flat out (a bloc!) especially with three days in the Alps looming. I hope he does hold on, he really wanted that maillot jaune in London and here's a chance for him to have it, if even for a day."
opplock on 606
1342: Britain's Bradley Wiggins is over the top of the cote de Grandmont with a lead in excess of 16 minutes, and must be feeling good now.
All that is left now is one more category four climb, and the small matter of around 130 kilometres. The vast majority of that is flat or downhill and his Cofidis team-mates are leading the rest of the peloton.
1335: The result of the first sprint is in, and Boonen must be in good shape, as he takes the four points for second place, with Barloworld front man Robbie Hunter picking up two points.
As for Wiggins, his lead is still a comfortable 16 minutes as he begins the first of the two category four climbs of the day. This is his first real test of a hot afternoon.
1322: With the news that Wiggins has covered 37.6 kilometres in his first hour, the official tour website has asked his Cofidis team boss Francis Van Londersele what the Briton's chance of a stage win is.
Van L reckons it's a pity Wiggins hasn't had help from one or two other riders, but says his man is not tired and must keep up his gap of 15 minutes. Well, right now it's 17:20.
"I'm hazarding a guess, but maybe the calendar has played a role in deciding the Brits to have a go today. Today is the 40th anniversary of Tom Simpson's death."
paulthebike on 606
1306: About 30km to the west, across the Cote d'Or hills, is the city of Dijon, where that famous mustard comes from. But did you know 90% of the seeds that go into it don't even come from France? More importantly, Wiggins has completed the first descent of the day, and his lead is exactly 14 minutes.
1255: This is exciting for Wiggins, Cofidis and British cycling in general. The 27-year-old, born in Belgium but raised in north-west London, has a lead of 11:20 with 40 of the day's 200 kilometres behind him. The first descent of the day awaits him.
1244: The route now comes almost alongside the famous Autoroute du Soleil - which generations of British tourists have taken en route to pleasant holiday destinations. Wiggins' lead is becoming significant now, at 9:30. Where are the likes of McEwen or Tom Boonen?
1236: So much for Grivko's challenge. He can't handle the pace of Wiggins and is swallowed up by the peloton. As for Wiggins himself, his overall lead is now at 8:40 minutes with 31 kilometres gone. He's got about another 20 kms of basically flat terrain as the riders follow the Armancon valley.
"One of the big name sprinters will surely win - McEwen was angry after stage four and feels he has a point to prove and a green jersey to win back. I'll back him to take a very tight sprint finish. Good on Bradley Wiggins though! Flying the flag!"
Jackus007 on 606
1221: Ukrainian rider Andriy Grivko of Team Milram decides something has to be done about Wiggins' break and sets off in pursuit of the Londoner. Wiggins won't necessarily mind this - we await developments...
1212: After 14 kilometres, Wiggins has gone out solo and his lead is now an impressive 5:40 minutes, so he has the "virtual" yellow jersey. Remember this guy is the reigning world and Olympic pursuit champion and is enjoying a tremendous season. This could be interesting - there are just two very gentle climbs today.
1159: The stage is underway, and surprisingly there have been one or two breaks already. Bradley Wiggins, the British rider with Cofidis, has built up a 20-second advantage over the peloton.
1151: The injuries sustained by Kloden and Vinokourov have left Astana manager Marc Biver feeling pretty pessimistic about the team's hopes for the rest of the Tour - in fact he has written them off completely.
"I don't think so," he said. "Let's be realistic, Kloden is not in the best conditions to ride. Nobody can say if they are in a position to finish the Tour, let alone the stage. It does not augur well.
"Vinokourov is fantastic. He has an impressive morale. I never saw a rider with such wounds being so relaxed. He left the hospital at quarter past midnight and was upbeat.
"But I feel that Kloden's spirits are really down."
1130: It's the last day for the sprinters ahead of the Alps as the Tour De France gears up for the sixth stage, a 199.5km trip from Semur-en-Auxois to Bourg-en-Bresse.
With only two small category four climbs on Friday's stage, King of the Mountains leader Sylvain Chavanel is likely to retain the polka dot jersey.
Fabian Cancellara of Team CSC is still the overall leader, with Briton David Millar in fourth, while Tour contenders Alexandre Vinokourov and Andreas Kloeden have been cleared to ride.
Kloden fractured his tailbone and Vinokourov needed stitches in a deep cut on his right knee and in his elbow after crashing on stage five, which was won by Italy's Filippo Pozzato.
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