Brilliant lead-out by van der Poel doesn’t pay off for Groves: "Sometimes it's better to hit the brakes"

“It was actually a very tough final, especially the uphill section towards the last roundabout,” Van der Poel analyzed on Eurosport and NOS. Alpecin-Deceuninck took the lead early on, which made the Dutchman's work all the more impressive. "We knew that teams would come from behind, so I tried to time my lead-out as well as possible. I had to wait a moment because Kaden lost my wheel, but in the end, we did well with third place."

Groves lost van der Poel's wheel for a moment because there was a brief incident with Milan at the last roundabout. “I got to the front a little too early and lost a few places when I came into contact with Milan,” the sprinter admitted, also to Eurosport. “It was a super tough sprint, as expected. I didn't feel great, but the team did a great job. Mathieu tried to set me up as best he could, but on a finish like that, it's all about the legs.”

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Van der Poel was not surprised that Milan won. The Italian from Lidl-Trek is a better sprinter than Groves by nature. “We know that Milan is the fastest here, along with Tim Merlier. With Jasper, we might have had a better chance,” he said, referring to Jasper Philipsen, who had to go home after a crash. That makes Groves the sprint leader now. “Kaden already did the Giro and is improving every day here. Maybe we'll get another chance with him later.”

Van der Poel understood why Groves did not stay up close to the wheel of his lead-out at all costs. “I didn't see why Kaden lost my wheel. Normally, he follows, but sometimes it's too dangerous, and it's better to hit the brakes. We stayed out of trouble because it was hectic, as always, in the Tour. We came from far behind, and the uphill finish was difficult. At a certain point, we decided to go, and Milan was by far the strongest.”

On Sunday, there will be another sprint opportunity, but van der Poel thought Saturday's finale was actually more suitable for Groves. Nevertheless, he remains confident now that he can suddenly sprint for himself in the Tour. “We're going to go for every sprint, and we're going to keep believing. I didn't have the best legs after a challenging week, but I'm positive.”