It looks like the Astana team has decided to bid its time and let some other teams (namely AG2R) do the work for a while. They are saving their energy for the Alps (starting about stage 17) where the race winner will be decided.
In stage nine, Astana stayed near the front but let AG2R do the work of protecting the yellow jersey. I don't think there's any doubt that when they get back to the mountains, both Armstrong and Contador will make short work of AG2R's race leader, Rinaldo Nocentini. But until then, Astana will be very happy to let AG2R expend their energy defending the leaders.
Stage nine had some difficult climbs that scattered the field, but they were able to come back together before the finish line and no one made up any real time. The stage nine winner was Frenchman Pierrick Fedrigo of Bouyges Telecom (pictured), with another Frenchman, Franco Pellizotti of Liquigas, finishing second. But the standings remained pretty much the same.
Monday is a rest day for the Tour riders, and stage ten won't be run until Tuesday. Here are the current standings:
YELLOW JERSEY (OVERALL LEADERS)
1. Rinaldo Nocentini (AG2R)
2. Alberto Contador (Astana)..........0.06
3. Lance Armstrong (Astana)..........0.08
4. Levi Leipheimer (Astana)..........0.39
5. Bradley Wiggins (Garmin)..........0.46
6. Andreas Kloden (Astana)..........0.54
7. Tony Martin (Columbia)..........1.00
8. Christian Vande Velde (Garmin)..........1.24
9. Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank)..........1.49
10. Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas)..........1.54
GREEN JERSEY (SPRINTERS)
1. Thor Hushovd (Cervelo)..........117 pts
2. Mark Cavendish (Columbia)..........106 pts
3. Jose Rojas (Caisse)..........75 pts
4. Gerald Ciolek (Milram)..........66 pts
5. Oscar Freire (Rabobank)..........62 pts
POLKA DOT JERSEY (CLIMBERS)
1. Egoi Martinez (Euskadi)..........78 pts
2. Christophe Kern (Cofidis)..........59 pts
3. Franco Pellizotti (Liquigas)..........55 pts
4. Brice Feillu (Agritubel)..........49 pts
5. Pierrick Fedrigo (Bouyges)..........49 pts
TEAM LEADERS
1. AG2R
2. Astana..........0.03
3. Columbia..........4.45
4. Milram..........5.20
5. Saxo Bank..........5.24
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