Evenepoel causes Ayuso and Pidcock time losses at the Tour de France: 'It was a reality check'
CyclingSunday, 05 July 2026 at 22:28
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Follow us on GoogleIsaac del Toro and Tadej Pogacar were dominant on stage 2 of the Tour de France. Remco Evenepoel made a strong comeback, and Jonas Vingegaard looked good, but according to those involved, the fact that the four finished 3 seconds ahead of a larger group in Stage 2 of the Tour de France had little to do with their legs.
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A total of nine riders finished within three seconds of the leading quartet. Lidl-Trek had Mattias Skjelmose and Juan Ayuso in the group, Uno-X Mobility had Tobias Halland Johannessen at the front, and Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ United), Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM), and Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious) made up the French contingent.
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The group also included Tom Pidcock (Pinarello-Q36.5), Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto-Intermarché), and Ilan Van Wilder (Soudal Quick-Step). According to Ayuso, this group could easily have finished right on the wheel of Del Toro and his teammates. “Remco opened up a big gap on the descent.”
Evenepoel himself called it ‘a gamble’, because by slowing the pace, he wanted to make an attack from the back of the group possible. Del Toro, however, kept pushing hard at the front. Evenepoel was the only one able to close the gap and still finish with the leading three.
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Ayuso didn't have the legs, Pidcock shines
"That gap on the descent caused us to lose touch. But I didn't have the legs to win anyway, so it's no problem," Ayuso said afterward. The Spaniard from Lidl-Trek handed the white jersey over to stage winner Del Toro. "But we’re still in a good position, and now I don’t have to go up on the podium."
"We're focusing on ourselves," Ayuso continued. And that's exactly what Pinarello-Q36.5 did. Pidcock’s team boldly put a rider at the front of the peloton, but the Brit was also behind the breakaway and was therefore unable to contend for the stage win.
"We weren't afraid to go for it, so hats off to the guys," said Pidcock. "I think I'm still missing just a little bit of race rhythm in the final, but it was good to be reminded of how high the level is in the Tour. It was a reality check."
"I should be happy with how my legs felt. A top-ten finish isn't bad, right? We'll take that and build on it. It felt great to lead the peloton in the first part of the race. That was awesome. This is the Tour de France—welcome!"
Tom van der Salm (27) comes from the charming town of Zeilberg (Deurne) in the Netherlands and has been working as editor-in-chief & journalist at IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, In de Leiderstrui, since 2019. He travels with the peloton from the Tour de France to the AlUla Tour and from the World Championships in Rwanda or Canada to the Zilvermeercross in Mol. In his spare time he enjoys playing football, mountain biking, running, walking with his Labrador/Stabyhoun, investing, holidays, (specialty) beers, reading, cooking and watching sports & documentaries!
Contact: [email protected]
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Latest Comments
- - ¡Buen artículo! Del Toro ganador y aún así sanción al equipo… el Tour no perdona.patriciaw05-07-2026
- - Feels a bit nit-picky from the jury. They “had nothing to say” otherwise? Plenty of sticky bottles go unnoticed. Consistency, please.andrewf05-07-2026
- - Yellow card for a mechanic is rare! Kavcnik must’ve offered a prolonged shove or adjusted something while the bike was moving. UAE still gets the stage, but those 500 CHF add up over three weeks.bikebuffj05-07-2026
- - Not sure I understand: what exactly is a “pre-filled water bottle” violation? Aren’t all bidons pre-filled? Is this about where/when it was handed up?breakawaybikerd05-07-2026
- - Nice roundup. Del Toro continues to impress, but the real story here is the fines. Rojas getting 500 CHF for Castrillo’s pre-filled bidon is pretty steep, though rules are rules.tourdeforce905-07-2026
- - Qué etapa tan emocionante. Remco jugando al póker y Del Toro apretando sin miedo. Esto promete muchísimo para la general. Bravo.cadencekingm05-07-2026
- - Wasn’t Romain Grégoire on Groupama-FDJ, not “Groupama-FDJ United”? Little editing slip there, lads.gearguru3305-07-2026
- - Three seconds isn’t much but psychologically it’s big. Vingegaard looked comfy on the wheel—no panic, just diesel mode. Classic Jonas.raceready705-07-2026
- - Pidcock saying “reality check” hits. He’s close, but missing that last 2%. Putting a man on the front then not making the move was a bit meh from Pinarello-Q5 though. Mixed signals?cyclechamp4505-07-2026
- - Can someone explain why a “gap on the descent” matters if they were all basically together? Don’t they just pedal harder on the flat to close it? Genuinely curious how that works tactically.michael5405-07-2026
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