The Tour de France’s gravel stage to Troyes on day 9 of the race might have led to a stalemate on the high of the final classification, however it wasn’t for lack of attempting by a number of yellow jersey contenders.
Race chief Tadej Pogačar (UAE Workforce Emirates) tried a number of main assaults on the gravel sectors on the Côte de Chacenay and Saint-Parres-aux-Tertres, although each had been introduced again, as would the transfer initiated by Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quickstep) at 77km from the end.
The Belgian, going clear on the Côte de Chacenay, was rapidly joined by Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard. Nonetheless, the assault failed after the Danish double Tour champion refused to collaborate.
Pogačar’s try on sector 4 at Verrières noticed Vingegaard and Visma-Lease A Bike teammate Matteo Jorgenson get on Pogačar’s wheel as Evenepoel was left behind. Nonetheless, that transfer would additionally fail resulting from their unwillingness to assist it alongside.
Evenepoel had some reducing phrases for the Dutch crew after the stage, suggesting that Vingegaard was racing too defensively on the stage. He did word, nonetheless, that he understood why the crew had employed these ways.
“I feel Tadej and I weren’t proud of it as a result of possibly the entire Tour may have been determined in the present day,” Evenepoel stated after the rostrum ceremony following one other day spent within the white jersey of greatest younger rider.
“Now we have to simply accept race ways and race conditions, however typically you additionally want the balls to race, and sadly possibly Jonas did not have them in the present day. However it’s no downside – the race remains to be very lengthy, and I completely settle for the the reason why he did not pull, why he did not race.
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“In fact, Tadej and I each prefer to assault fairly distant from the end, so we needed to proceed. Jonas is typically a bit extra defensive, however we have now to simply accept it. He could have all the nice causes to have raced like this, so I additionally utterly perceive why.”
Evenepoel famous that Visma-Lease A Bike had earlier placed on a quick tempo, main him to make the primary main acceleration among the many race’s high contenders. He went clear on the uphill gravel run of the Chacenay earlier than Pogačar and Vingegaard got here throughout the hole.
The trio, gained half a minute on the peloton earlier than the transfer fell aside. Evenepoel accepted the scenario, even when it led to an finally irritating final result.
“I knew that it was one of many final exhausting sections on the gravel and I simply needed to go for it,” Evenepoel stated. “It was like a cross-tailwind so a really quick sector. Ultimately, if you happen to see the hole that we had, we had immediately 30-40 seconds after that sector.
“So, like I stated, if we got here to the entrance group and we might take turns all collectively, I feel the race may have been determined there. However like in addition they stated, it is race conditions and race ways, and we have now to simply accept that.”
Apart from the dearth of assist supplied by Visma-Lease A Bike, the opposite main incidents in Evenepoel’s day on the bike noticed him caught behind the assaults on two events.
The primary got here on sector 8 at Mangnant, the place Evenepoel stated he was caught behind a handful of riders who missed a nook and wanted to drag a foot out of the pedals earlier than battling again to place.
The second got here at Verrières, the place he was caught out of place as Pogačar took the Visma males with him up entrance. On that event, Evenepoel was lucky that the Dutch squad employed such timid ways.
“Really, I instructed my teammates to deliver me to the primary 5 positions, however they did not so I wasn’t actually proud of that,” Evenepoel stated. “Then I needed to shut the hole myself as a result of really I needed to go myself on this sector and that is one thing that we have now to know.
“Typically we have now to be extra aggressive and particularly in a race like in the present day, you simply must put the elbows out and combat. Fortunately, I had the legs to shut the hole.
“OK, the Visma guys did not pull Tadej, however I’ve to confess that the motos had been using actually shut in entrance it was a headwind, so that they actually pulled them away. Typically possibly the race organisation has to take a look at that.
“However I’ve no regrets – I feel that, in the long run, it has been a superb race for us. It is the remaining day and we’re in second spot in GC, half a minute behind, with a stage win. An ideal first week for us.”
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