News Item of the Day: Axel (son of Eddy "The Cannibal") Merckx put in a great escape Friday, soloing to victory in Stage 5 of the Dauphiné Libéré. Second on the stage Inigo Landaluze of Spain (Euskaltel) usurped the overall race lead as a lackadaisical peloton rolled home nine minutes off the back.

A 219-km, roller-coaster route between Vaison-La-Romaine and the French Alps capital of Grenoble, Friday's race was decided on the Grimone climb, the second of five categorised ascents on Stage 5's mountain menu. Peeling free seven kilometres from the summit of the category-two Grimone, Davitamon-Lotto rider Merckx ratcheted to a 1 min 20 sec solo lead at the mountain's top. Diving into the drops, Merckx fired on full pistons for the remaining 103 km in the race, crossing the finish 2 min 15 sec free of second-placed Landaluze. "I just stood up on the pedals, looked back and realised nobody was following. So I continued," said Merckx, 32, the road race bronze medallist at the 2004 Athens Olympics. "I suffered and it took courage but I enjoyed it. I worked hard... and I'm glad the work paid off," he said.

Landaluze, riding for the Spanish formation Euskaltel, overtook the top of the Dauphiné Libéré's general classification, benefiting from a ho-hum attitude in the main field that brought the peloton home a yawning 9 min 36 sec adrift of stage winner Merckx. Landaluze, 11th and 4 min 30 sec off the pace overnight, saw his stock rise all the way to the yellow-and-blue jersey of the Dauphiné Libéré's overall leadership Friday. Spanish climber extraordinaire Landaluze now lords a 2 min 32 sec advantage in the overall standings over Merckx.

Deposed race leader Levi Leipheimer (Gerolsteiner) -- victim to but unscathed by a crash on the day's final downhill -- sits in current third (at 2 min 51 sec) with fellow American and six-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong occupying fourth, 3 min 12 sec adrift.

Viewpoint: I see a lot of people panicking and saying the big guys have let the race slip away by giving Landaluze such a lead. He's a decent climber, but he's very crackable. They will have to work but it's not a lost cause. Saturday is a tough stage. He will be tested.