Iban Mayo takes 2nd in Stage 8

Michael Rasmussen crushed stage 8 and holds a good lead now in the Tour de France.  He's wearing the leaders yellow jersey.  Iban Mayo put on a good chase and closed the gap for his second place finish.



By the end of the climbing in Stage 8, only Antonio Colom and David Arroyo were still with Rasmussen.  But Rasmussen eventually dropped them (in a big way) at the base of  the last steep hill of the stage. Rasmussen created a margin of about four minutes for the remainder of the ride. 

Iban Mayo has a strong individual performance to close that gap, and came in 2.47 back for 2nd.

Alejandro Valverde stayed behind Christophe Moreau for most of the climb but then passed Moreau easily at the end to take 3rd.

Rasmussen now has a solid lead in this year's Tour de France.  He's the man to beat.