It was third time lucky for Edvald Boasson Hagen as he won stage 19 of the Tour de France while Chris Froome crossed safely in the pack to retain the yellow jersey with two stages to go.
Norwegian Boasson Hagen has been on the wrong side of two photo finishes so far in this Tour but he made certain of victory in Salon-de-Provence as he attacked out of the breakaway with three kilometres to go and raced solo to the line.
Nikias Arndt did his best to keep up but the Team Sunweb man came home in second place, five seconds behind.
That all happened a good 12 and a half minutes before the peloton crossed the line, with the contenders taking it relatively easy after two long days in the Alps.
Team Sky's Froome leads by 23 seconds from Frenchman Romain Bardet and 29 seconds from Colombian Rigoberto Uran going into Saturday's penultimate stage, a 22.5km time trial starting and finishing in Marseille's Velodrome stadium.
Team Dimension Data's Boasson Hagen was denied by just six millimetres - or 0.0003 seconds - when Marcel Kittel won stage seven to Nuits-Saint-Georges in the first week of the Tour.
He was then beaten again by Michael Matthews on stage 16, a victory that would have been all the sweeter for his South African-based team as it would have come on Mandela Day.
Add in two third places along the way, and he was due a victory.
"I'm really happy," Boasson Hagen said. "It's been really close many times, but today I managed to make an attack so we didn't have to do a photo finish.
"I've been getting confidence by seeing I could be so close so many times. It's always bitter when you're not winning but now I'm so happy."
A day after the final mountain test, the organisers threw the longest stage of the entire Tour at the riders as they rode 222.5km from Embrun.
Although this stage was listed as flat, Sky were eager to avoid it coming to a sprint finish given the technical nature of the final three kilometres - with three sharp bends perhaps inviting a crash if the race was on.
As such, they allowed a 20-man break - also including another ex-Sky man in the shape of Ben Swift - to go almost 10 minutes up the road.
It began to fracture inside the final 20km, with Boasson Hagen part of a nine-man group that left Swift and the others behind.
At a roundabout with four kilometres to go, Arndt and Boasson Hagen went down the right of a roundabout while the others went left, and that was the moment the duo went clear.
"I'd been looking at the book before so I knew it was shorter on the right," Boasson Hagen said. "Nikias knew that as well. When he made an attack I followed him, then I could counter-attack and he couldn't follow."
It was Boasson Hagen's third career Tour stage win, with the other two coming in Sky colours in 2011.
Froome is now firmly odds on for a fourth Tour title with Saturday's time trial expected to see him gain further time on his rivals.
The 32-year-old certainly looked in relaxed mood as the peloton cruised along, and he even took time to high-five famed Tour fan Didi the Devil along the way.
Team Sunweb's Matthews now simply needs to make it to Paris to clinch the green jersey as leader of the points classification.
"The last two nights since I got the jersey I really couldn't sleep," said Matthews, who will be the third Australian to win the points classification. "Maybe that has affected my performance in the last couple of days, but all of my dreams have really come true."
With Sunday's stage to Paris traditionally processional, the time trial should be all that stands between Froome and a third straight victory.
"Certainly at this point it's my race to lose," he said. "I have to make sure I do everything right, follow the right processes and hopefully not have the bad day. I've got the legs, and hopefully everything else will be all right."
Froome is yet to win a stage on this Tour and is aware that, if he falls short on Saturday, he could become one of only six people to win the Tour without taking a stage.
However, he believes Marseille could play to his strengths.
"It's definitely a fast course, there's a small climb out the back of Marseille," he said. "I think it suits me well, it's quite a power time trial.
"I certainly think someone like (Primoz) Roglic or Tony Martin could be fighting for the stage win tomorrow."
Final leading positions after Stage 19, (Embrun - Salon de Provence - 222.5km):
1 Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Dimension Data 5hrs 06mins 09secs
2 Nikias Arndt (Ger) Team Sunweb at 5secs
3 Jens Keukeleire (Bel) Orica-Scott at 17secs
4 Daniele Bennati (Ita) Movistar Team
5 Thomas De Gendt (Bel) Lotto Soudal
6 Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Direct Energie
7 Elie Gesbert (Fra) Team Fortuneo - Oscaro
8 Jan Bakelants (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale at same time
9 Michael Albasini (Swi) Orica-Scott at 19secs
10 Pierre Luc Perichon (Fra) Team Fortuneo - Oscaro at 1min 32secs
11 Lilian Calmejane (Fra) Direct Energie at 1min 37secs
12 Ben Swift (Gbr) UAE Team Emirates
13 Gianluca Brambilla (Ita) Quick-Step Floors
14 Julien Simon (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits
15 Romain Hardy (Fra) Team Fortuneo - Oscaro
16 Rudy Molard (Fra) FDJ
17 Robert Kiserlovski (Cro) Katusha-Alpecin
18 Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto Soudal
19 Romain Sicard (Fra) Direct Energie
20 Bauke Mollema (Ned) Trek-Segafredo all at same time
Selected others:
26 Luke Rowe (Gbr) Team Sky at 12mins 27secs
27 Christopher Froome (Gbr) Team Sky
45 Simon Yates (Gbr) Orica-Scott
78 Scott Thwaites (Gbr) Dimension Data
79 Stephen Cummings (Gbr) Dimension Data at same time
Leading general classification after Stage 19:
1 Christopher Froome (Gbr) Team Sky 83hrs 26mins 55secs
2 Romain Bardet (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale at 23secs
3 Rigoberto Uran (Col) Cannondale-Drapac at 29secs
4 Mikel Landa (Spa) Team Sky at 1min 36secs
5 Fabio Aru (Ita) Astana Pro Team at 1min 55secs
6 Daniel Martin (Irl) Quick-Step Floors at 2mins 56secs
7 Simon Yates (Gbr) Orica-Scott at 4mins 46secs
8 Louis Meintjes (RSA) UAE Team Emirates at 6mins 52secs
9 Warren Barguil (Fra) Team Sunweb at 8mins 22secs
10 Alberto Contador (Spa) Trek-Segafredo at 8mins 34secs
11 Damiano Caruso (Ita) BMC Racing Team at 13mins 41secs
12 Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar Team at 13mins 52secs
13 Mikel Nieve (Spa) Team Sky at 23mins 11secs
14 Alexis Vuillermoz (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale at 23mins 33secs
15 Emanuel Buchmann (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe at 31mins 01secs
16 Brice Feillu (Fra) Team Fortuneo - Oscaro at 35mins 06secs
17 Bauke Mollema (Ned) Trek-Segafredo at 36mins 13secs
18 Carlos Betancur (Col) Movistar Team at 36mins 25secs
19 Serge Pauwels (Bel) Dimension Data at 37mins 31secs
20 Tiesj Benoot (Bel) Lotto Soudal at 40mins 49secs
Selected others:
81 Ben Swift (Gbr) UAE Team Emirates 2hrs 50mins 55secs
106 Scott Thwaites (Gbr) Dimension Data 3hrs 12mins 32secs
137 Stephen Cummings (Gbr) Dimension Data 3hrs 44mins 54secs
167 Luke Rowe (Gbr) Team Sky 4hrs 33mins 04secs