UAE see in-form Christen crash, but receive encouraging news on Wellens

In principle, Wellens’ spring Classics campaign looks to be off the table, although we have often seen riders return surprisingly quickly from a collarbone fracture. From his balcony in Monaco, Wellens is at least back on the bike already — with plasters and abrasions from the crash still clearly visible.

“The rehabilitation process has already started. I’m extremely disappointed to miss the upcoming races, but I’ll be cheering my teammates on from the sofa,” the Belgian champion wrote after the crash and the operation that was required to repair his collarbone.

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There was fresh bad luck for UAE on stage 2 of Tirreno-Adriatico. Christen — who played a key role for Tadej Pogačar at Strade Bianche and finished sixth himself — hit the deck on the gravel in the finale. It happened in the same corner where Thymen Arensman also crashed.

UAE reported the fall via social media, but also stressed that the Swiss rider is OK. Christen did concede 57 seconds to stage winner Mathieu van der Poel, meaning he is now expected to switch to a support role for Isaac del Toro, who took the race lead on day two.

And that was not all. Even in training, things can go wrong: Davide Stella from UAE’s development team posted on Instagram about being hit by a car. “The driver was distracted and didn’t see me. I’m sick of this happening again — even though I’m OK,” he wrote.