The 12th stage gets underway at Castelsarrasin - after the neutral zone there is an immediate attack on the peloton

Frederic Finot and Marcus Ljungqvist make the move and are quickly followed by Kim Kirchen and Wim Vansevenant

The peloton appears to be unconcerned with the leaders - the gap is four minutes and twenty seconds

But the peloton, led by US Postal, catches the group of four escapees at the 157km mark on the slopes of the Col d'Aspin

It is now raining on the riders, with the sky grey and overcast and the wet roads will prove an additional challenge

The US Postal team are setting a fast pace and Hamilton and Ullrich (right) are struggling to keep up

As the finish looms, Armstrong and Basso make a break away from the peloton and are wheel-to-wheel to the end

But CSC rider Ivan Basso makes his move, takes the lead and secures the 12th stage victory in La Mongie

Armstrong moves to second overall but Thomas Voeckler's brave ride ensures he holds on to the yellow jersey