As for Froome sand-bagging it, I don't think so. In the post-stage interviews he said he really wanted to drive it on to give Pouls the stage win and it certainly seemed like it given the way they were reeling him in on the last 3 km, even after all the other guys had been distanced. Furthermore, Froome's struggled on super-steep climbs like these all season, (e.g. the stage to Peyregudes in the Tour and the throughout the Vuelta), whereas Bertie still seems to be tackling them reasonably well.

I was not surprised at all to see him take the stage. Who else was going to challenge him?