All the cards were in place for Mark Cavendish to take his 35th stage win today, and the Astana rider made history in the Stage 5 of the 2024 Tour de France to cement his legacy. If there is any sign of his record, the first to congratulate him at the line were his rivals and former teammates.
Cavendish’s Astana Qazaqstan team wisely built a squad for the 2024 Tour around the Manxman, signing some of the best leadout men in the peloton, and adding Cav’s former lieutenant Mark Renshaw to the coaching staff. Team Director Alexandr Vinokurov wisely saw the PR benefits of the legendary rider setting the record in their team colors.
Cavendish’s last stage win at the Tour de France came in 2021, when he pulled even with the record of Eddy Merckx. It’s safe to say that his Deceuninck–Quick-Step did not give him the support he needed to beat the record, even denying him a slot on their 2022 TdF roster, and not renewing his contract at the end of the season.
Cavendish joined the Astana Qazaqstan Team in 2023 with the intention of riding one more season to try and take the record. His season started well with a stage win in the 2023 Giro. In July, Cavendish missed out on extending his Tour de France stage win record, finishing second on stage 7. He abandoned the race after a fall the following day. After discussions with Vinokurov in October of 2023, he announced he had reconsidered his decision to retire, and would stay with Astana for the following season.
A Day for the Sprinters
Once again, we picked up race coverage about 90 minutes into the stage. Stage 5 is a generally flat stage measuring just a little over 177km in length. It’s another one for the sprinters. While the Cavendish watch continues, many are looking for a repeat win from Biniam Girmay. Though the day has started in dry conditions, race radio is reporting rainy conditions at the finish.
The day started with half-hearted breakaway attempts and a casual pace from the peloton.
Russo and Vercher Attack
About 25km in, Clement Russo (Groupama-FDJ) attacked and opened a lead of around 40 seconds. Matteo Vercher (TotalEnergies) went on the chase and made the catch. Russo and Vercher are local boys, both natives of Lyon, located just 30 km from today’s finish line in Saint-Vulbas. Of the two Vercher is the best ranked in the GC. The TotalEnergies rider does not represent a threat to the favourites, as he is in 133rd place overall, 1h15’30” behind Tadej Pogacar. \
The two looked to form the break of the day. Lidl-Trek and Alpecin-Deceuninck riders were setting the pace for the peloton. With 127km remaining, their lead had opened to 4’45”.
With the general pace has not yet picked up, the leaders have slowed in comparison to the peloton and their lead dropped to under 3’30” with about 100km to go.
With about 75km remaining, the leaders had slowed significantly while things started to heat up in the peloton. The gap was 2’47” and dropping.
Russo was the first rider over the Cat. 4 Côte du Cheval Blanc, taking the first mountain points of the day, but the peloton continued to draw nearer, at 2’25”.
Win Drought
The teams of Russo and Vercher have both gone the longest without scoring a victory in the Tour. For TotalEnergies, the drought dates back to July 8, 2017, when Lilian Calmejane won at Station des Rousses. For Groupama-FDJ the last win was with Thibaut Pinot, on July 20, 2019, in the Tourmalet.
No one expects that drought to end today for either team. With 53km to go, the gap was down to 1’20”.
Into The Rain
With 45km remaining, it has started raining. While the peloton still gets closer to the break at 46″, the weather favors two riding together versus a crowded peloton that has to be more careful.
Rain vests on, the peloton drives forward. Astana and Mark Cavendish are close to the front. Lidl-Trek, UAE and Ineos were all there as well.
The Catch
Russo and Vercher were caught with 36km remaining in the stage. The blue jerseys of Astana and Visma Lease-a-Bike were prevalent at the front. Off the back, Nils Pollit and Stefan Bissenger seemed to suffering a little.
With 16km to go, speeds in the peloton were still ramping up – close to 32 mph – and the rain had stopped for the time being.
Cavendish’s Astana team seems to be strongly in control of the right side of the road. Could it be his day?
With 10km to go, speeds are up and the peloton starts to fracture a bit.
7km to go and speeds are up to 38mph.
Speeds continued to ramp up to the finish, with each closing kilometer seeming to close faster and faster. All the cards fell right and Cavendish jumped at the right moment to take his historic win.
Big Gamble
“We just wanted to get the run in to do it,” said an emotional Cavendish at the finish. “Astana put a big gamble on this year to make sure we are good here at the Tour de France. We gambled to come here and try to win at least one stage.
“It is a big gamble for my boss Alexandre Vinokourov. But he is an ex bike rider and he knows what the Tour de France is. He knows you have to go all in, and we have done it.
“We worked out exactly what we wanted to do. How we built the team, what we did with equipment, every little has been put towards specifically today.”
“I have done 15 Tours de France now. I don’t like to have bad days, I don’t like to suffer. But I know it is just in the head and you push, you get through it. And you work and you can have an opportunity,” he concluded.
Stage 5 Brief Results
- Mark Cavendish (Astana Qazaqstan)
- Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck)
- Alexander Kristoff (Uno-X)
- Arnaud de Lie (Lotto-dstny)
- Fabio Jakobsen (Team dsm-firmenich PostNL)
General Classification After Stage 5
- Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates)
- Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick Step) +45”
- Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) +50”
- Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) +1’10”
- Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) +1’14”
- Carlos Rodríguez (Ineos Grenadiers) +1’16”
- Mikel Landa (Soudal-Quick Step) +1’32”
- Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates) +1’32”
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