Jens Voigt of Germany outsprinted Spaniard Oscar Pereiro Sio after a 209-km breakaway to win the 13th stage of the Tour de France.
Pereiro Sio began the day 46th overall, 28 minutes 50 seconds behind yellow jersey holder, Floyd Landis.
After five hours 24 minutes and 36 seconds in the saddle, Voigt (CSC) and Pereiro Sio (Caisse d'Epargne) powered away from two other escapees, France's Sylvain Chavanel (Cofidis) and Manuel Quinziato (Liquigas) of Italy.
Chavanel finished third just ahead of Quinziato, 40 seconds adrift of Voigt.
A fifth member of the breakaway, Ukrainian Andriy Grivko (Milram) dropped off the group in the last of the five fourth-category climbs which punctuated the course, 25 km from the line.
The five riders escaped at the 21-km mark of the Tour's longest stage.
Despite the scorching heat, with temperatures up to 42 degrees Celsius, they pushed themselves along the 230-km stage from the Mediterranean city of Beziers to Montelimar, the gateway to Provence, through the foothills of the Massif Central.
The peloton, deprived of a boss by the retirement of seven-times champion Lance Armstrong and missing contenders German Jan Ullrich and Italian Ivan Basso who were implicated in a Spanish doping probe, let them go.
