2015 Tour de France: Stage 2 News, Notes and Quotes

Cancellara happy while Cavendish fumes in a rainy and stormy second stage of the 2015 Tour de France.

Cancellara ‘all smiles’ After Capturing Yellow

The expected wind and rain wreaked havoc in the peloton in stage two at the Tour de France but Trek Factory Racing’s Fabian Cancellara was all smiles after finishing third in the sprint from a decimated group to lay claim to a 29th day in the yellow jersey.

The added wind and wet roads in today’s flat stage that began in Utrecht and ended in Zélande saw a particularly nervous and jittery peloton, and when the hammer fell with some 60 kilometers still to race the peloton exploded into groups.

“I had cramps at the end, it was so fast and nervous, but finally some luck,” smiled Cancellara.  “I had so much problems out of the corners, out of the roundabouts, the problem was from yesterday, I paid a lot – I mean everyone probably did – from yesterday’s effort.”

“I did not have it in my mind to beat anyone, just on the yellow [jersey]. I was just behind Peter [Sagan] and I was waiting and waiting, and then all of a sudden they were going! But it was so long to the finish still! I just tried to get as close to the front as possible to maybe have a gap with Tony [Martin].”

Cavendish Blames Teammates For Lost Opportunity

Etixx – Quick-Step rider Mark Cavendish finished 4th in the stage, as the peloton split in the Dutch crosswinds with less than 60km to go and never came back together.

Cavendish pointed the finger at leadout man Mark Renshaw for the loss.

“I think Mark went too early and kind of left me hanging. We died. The day Cancellara beats me in a sprint, I have gone too long. I have gassed it. It’s disappointing.”

Etixx – Quick-Step manager Patrick Lefevere criticised Cavendish for not trying harder to clinch third place and deny Cancellara the bonuses.

He said: “Cavendish stopped sprinting and this costs Tony the jersey. I am not happy at all. Probably this was our last chance to take the yellow jersey.”

In later comments published by the team, the Manx Missile was a little less dismissive of his team:

“I’m disappointed obviously, but you can take the positives that Etixx – Quick-Step rode strong today. They forced the split and rode to the end selflessly. Tony Martin rode in the green jersey. I’m disappointed we couldn’t get it, but it’s the Tour de France and Andre Greipel deserved the win today. Now we look to tomorrow. It’s a finish that can suit guys like Michal and Rigo. We’ve got a team that can be in the actions of a lot of stages in this first week. For me personally, the day of the cobblestones might be a chance, but the stages after are more likely to be a bunch sprint. We will see what can happen as we have nine strong riders who can try to make something happen, as we did today.”

Froome and Contador Comfortable

One year after crashing out of the race, Chris Froome and Alberto Contador were back in control of the Tour de France, hurting their main rivals in a hectic second stage won by German Andre Greipel on Sunday.

Crosswinds and crashes caused several splits as the peloton made its way through heavy rain on a 166-kilometre ride from Utrecht, with Froome and Contador ending up in a small leading group that also included American Tejay van Garderen as they finished one minute 28 seconds ahead of the main pack.

In that pack was defending champion Vincenzo Nibali, Colombian Nairo Quintana and France’s Thibaut Pinot, who could only limit the damage after being trapped behind on a stage that went along the North Sea.

“This a huge advantage for us to sit in this position after one flat day out on the road,” Team Sky rider Froome told reporters.

“This is a three-week race and things do change on a daily basis. We’re ahead today but who knows what’s in store for us for the rest of the week,”

Contador, of the Tinkoff-Saxo team, said: “There are days like this when you’re very happy to have team mates like mine.” Froome is 10th overall, 48 seconds behind Cancellara, who is wearing the yellow jersey for the first time since 2012, while Contador sits in 14th place one minute off the pace.

Nibali Loses Time on Stormy Day

By the time Vincenzo Nibali reached the sanctuary of his team coach, it was a beautiful summer’s evening, but a stormy second stage had already left a cloud over his hopes of following up last year’s Tour de France victory.

It was a complete contrast to last year’s second stage when Nibali attacked Froome and Contador after a hard day in the hills of Yorkshire and powered to victory and the yellow jersey, which he held all the way to Paris.

Nibali, who at one stage even loss contact with the chasing bunch after a puncture, eventually rejoined the peloton and rolled into the dramatic coastal finish at Zeeland one minute 28 seconds behind Froome.

Team director Giuseppe Martineli said it had just been one of those unpredictable days when things do not go quite to plan. He refused to believe Nibali’s chances had been seriously undermined.

“Last year everything was great, less so this year, but that’s cycling,” the Italian told reporters.

“It’s a lot of time lost for today but it can change tomorrow or the day after.”