TOUR DE FRANCE Spain's Pereiro leads; Landis is second

The Spaniard is the seventh different leader in the 13 stages to date.
MONTELIMAR, France (AP) -- American Floyd Landis lost the overall lead at the Tour de France on Saturday, dropping more than a minute behind Spain's Oscar Pereiro after the longest stage of the three-week race.
Pereiro, of the Illes Balears team, was among a group of five riders that pulled away from the main pack on the 143-mile stage and built up a huge lead.
While German Jens Voigt won the stage, Pereiro took the race lead. Landis was well behind in the main pack, finishing 29 minutes and 57 seconds back.
He slipped to second place overall, 1:29 behind Pereiro.
Pereiro is the seventh rider to take the leader's yellow jersey at this topsy-turvy Tour marked by the absence of Lance Armstrong, the seven-time champion who retired last year, and of top favorites Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich. They were sent home before the race began because of allegations that they were linked to a doping ring in Spain.
One short of mark
Only at the Tours of 1958 and 1987 have there been more overall leaders: eight.
"The Tour is pretty exciting, the yellow jersey changes every day," Voigt said.
Landis said he made a tactical choice to allow Pereiro to take the lead, so that both he and his Phonak team did not waste energy chasing the Spaniard down. Having Pereiro in yellow also spares Landis and Phonak the need to defend the race lead today, the last day of racing before a rest day Monday.
"To me, it's better to save our team," Landis said.
Landis' sole goal is to be in the lead at the finish in Paris on July 23. Hard climbs in the Alps and the final long time trial next week should give the U.S. rider plenty of opportunities to recover the lead and the prized jersey.
"If I have it in Paris, and I don't win any stages, that's fine," Landis said.
Pereiro said he believes that Landis will be able to take back the lead whenever he wants.
"I have to be realistic," he said.
"Floyd is thinking, 'I give it to him on the flat days and take it back later,"' Voigt said.
Pereiro had started the stage in 46th place, 28:50 behind Landis.
"It would have been lying to say that I thought I was going to finish in the yellow jersey," he said. "It's very special for me."
Pereiro rode for Landis' Phonak squad before switching to Illes Balears.
"I don't think we need to keep the jersey every single day, and I'm happy to see Pereiro get the jersey," Landis said. "He's an ex-teammate of mine, and he looked happy."
Second stage win
The win was Voigt's second in nine Tours and a welcome boost for Team CSC. It sent home leader Ivan Basso before the Tour because of allegations the Italian was linked to a doping ring in Spain.
"You can't imagine how happy I am. It is perhaps the happiest day of my life," Voigt said on French television.
A total of 160 riders started the stage, which featured a winding, hilly course from Beziers near the Mediterranean through vineyards and hills to Montelimar in southern France.
Voigt, a 34-year-old German, and Pereiro were among the five riders who pulled away from the main pack just 12 miles out of Beziers.
Some 130 miles remained to Montelimar. Despite the intense heat, the five cyclists rode quickly and built a lead of some 30 minutes over the main pack -- by far the largest margin developed by a group of escape riders at this Tour.
Finished in same time
Voigt and Pereiro finished in the same time, covering the stage in 5 hours, 24 minutes and 36 seconds.
French rider Sylvain Chavanel, with Cofidis, and Italian Manuel Quinziato, of Liquigas, were 40 seconds back, in third and fourth place, respectively.
Andriy Grivko, the last of the five and the only Ukrainian not to win a stage so far at this Tour, was 6 minutes and 24 seconds back.
The Milram rider had tried to shake off the other four with a burst of speed on the day's last hill climb. But the four quickly countered and left Grivko behind instead. Voigt and Pereiro then shook off Chavanel and Quinziato and battled between themselves for reach the line first -- with Voigt getting there first.
"I just wanted it more than the others, I was more desperate," he said.
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