Houle attacked on the descent from the Port de Lers and then held off a group of strong climbers on the Mur de Péguère and the descent into Foix to take what was the first road win of his career, his previous two successes coming in the Canadian national time trial.
“I never won a race. I guess it was the right place to win my first race," said Houle.
"To win a race was a dream I had for my brother who died ten years ago. I’ve worked for him for years, it’s incredible. I don’t know what to say.”
Houle's long-range move wasn't just for himself, but also to help teammate Michael Woods, also present in the 29-strong early breakaway.
"I attacked to set it up for Michael Woods," said Houle. "I went full gas. I hanged on and suffered in the steep climb. I knew that with 30 seconds or 40 seconds lead at the top, I could do it.
"It was still a long time to go with an advantage of only 20 seconds but I never gave up. In the technical sectors, I gained some time. I was afraid to cramp towards the finish. I missed some food because I had no assistance car in the last 20km."
A break of 29 riders went clear of the peloton in the early stages of the race without much fuss, Aleksandr Vlasov (BORA-hansgrohe) the highest placed in the general classification at ten minutes and 32 seconds behind race leader Vingegaard at the start of the stage.
The peloton was happy to let the break gain a lead, with Jumbo-Visma pacing the main bunch as they navigated the rolling roads in the Aude region enroute to the two major climbs of the stage.
The category 1 ascent of the Port de Lers (11.5km at 6.5%) was the first up and saw some skirmishing from the breakaway as the top climbers Australian Michael Storer (Groupama-FDJ), Michael Woods (Israel-Premier Tech) and Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious) went clear before being reeled in by a reduced breakaway by the top of the climb, with Simon Geschke (Cofidis) claiming the top points as first over the line to add to his lead in the mountains classification.
Pogačar put in a series of big attacks from the peloton, launching clear with a few kilometres of the ascent of the Port de Lers remaining, Vingegaard scrambling to cover his biggest rival for the race win. He successfully closed down his Slovenian rival, Pogačar attacked again on the climb and then again on the descent from the Port de Lers, with the same result each time of Vingegaard neutralising the move.
Houle jumped clear of the lead group to go solo at the head of the stage, hitting the final climb of the Mur de Péguère (9.4km at 7.6%) with a lead of a minute on the chasers from the initial breakaway. He powered up the climb and impressively maintained his lead at the front of the race over a strong group of climbers that formed behind including Storer, Woods and Mateo Jorgenson (Trek-Segafredo), with Storer dropping away just before the top of the climb.
Houle crested the climb with 26 seconds lead, and extended his advantage on the descent from the Mur de Péguère. Jorgenson crashed through a corner, leaving Houle and teammate Woods the first two riders on the road, and although Jorgenson was able to return to Woods, the lead was out to a minute and Houle was assured of the win.
Houle traversed the flatland into Foix to take the first win of his career outside the Canadian national time trial championships, celebrating in style over the finish line as just the second Canadian to win a stage after Steve Bauer at the race.
The final climb was a less eventful general classification battle than the previous ascent, but arguably more impactful as Rafal Majka (UAE Team Emirates) set a very hard tempo that saw the group of favourites reduced to just Vingegaard, Pogačar, Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) and Nairo Quintana (Arkea-Samsic).
Majka suffered a dramatic mechanical mid climb, leaving Kuss to take over the pace-making with a more steady tempo that allowed Geraint Thomas (INEOS Grenadiers) to make it back to the group, with David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) rejoining later. The group of yellow jersey favourites finished together in Foix, with no changes to the top three on the general classification though there were time losses for many in the top ten.
The Tour de France continues in the Pyrenees with another mountain stage for Stage 17. Watch from 9.05pm AEST on the SBS SKODA Tour Tracker, with the SBS and SBS On Demand broadcast starting from 9.30pm AEST.
