In March this year, Lance Armstrong summed up Alberto Contador, his youthful Astana team-mate, thus: “Great talent, but still a lot to learn.”

That was felt to be a little harsh on a rider who has won three grand tours, of France, Italy and Spain, while the Texan was on the Hollywood party circuit.

Yet that cold assessment seemed proven correct last night when the Spaniard was blamed for letting the gap open in the peloton, which, ironically, allowed the wily Armstrong to climb up the overall race classification to within reach of the yellow jersey.

In the latter part of the third stage from Marseilles to La Grande Motte, a hot wind was gusting across the marshlands of the Camargue region. Planned or unplanned, Mark Cavendish's Columbia-HTC team accelerated in the crosswinds and suddenly were at the head of a group of 29 riders moving clear of the race.

“When the split happened I was right on Contador's wheel," Christophe Le Mevel, the French rider, said. “If it's true there were 29 guys in front, he must have been 30th and I was 31st. It was him who caused the split.

“I saw the gap opening up just in front of us and we just couldn't close it. With a lot of leaders stuck, it was complete panic.”

Whoever was at fault, the result was that Armstrong, accompanied by two team-mates, was at the front of the race and Contador - supposedly Astana's leader - was left behind, along with other contenders such as Carlos Sastre, the defending champion, Cadel Evans, Denis Menchov and Levi Leipheimer.

Armstrong sounded as if he was making a veiled reference to Contador's tactical naivety after the stage. “It wasn't that they didn't take advantage. It was just that they weren't there," he said of those contenders who were left behind.

“When you see what the wind is doing and you have a turn coming up, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out you have to go to the front. I've won the Tour de France seven times, so it makes no sense not to be there.”

Contador has been given a lesson by “The Boss” and the American is now the best-placed of the overall contenders. Yet, even so, we still don't know if Armstrong is the Spaniard's friend or his foe. Neither so it seems, does the increasingly isolated Contador.

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