Tour de France defending champion Alberto Contador, punched a fan on the climb to Alpe d' Huez, a day after losing significant time on the Galibier climb and the same day he lost the climb to Frenchman Pierre Rolland.

Contador, the Saxo Bank leader, had broken away from the peloton in a surprise attack on the climb up the Col de Telegraph.

Current yellow jersey holder Andy Schleck of Leopard-Trek marked Contador's attack and Contador's group was eventually caught on the base of the Alpe d' Huez.

On the lower slopes of the Alpe d' Huez, Contador attacked again and got a small gap.

One portion of the climb up the famed Alpe d' Huez was particularly strung out with fans, as riders needed to battle through the crowds to get up the mountain.

Contador punched a fan who was particularly aggressive in approaching the rider, as shown in the video below.

Rolland of Team Europcar attacked Contador with around 2 km left in the stage and rode solo for the stage win.

Although Contador was able to make a few seconds on Schleck and Cadel Evans, he is no longer in contention for the overall victory in the Tour de France.

RELATED STORIES
Video