'Evenepoel was afraid' - Vauquelin questions white jersey rival's tactics
Arkéa-B&B Hotels rider Kévin Vauquelin has suggested Remco Evenepoel's tactics on the final ascent of the Mur-de-Bretagne on stage 7 of the Tour de France were driven by fear rather than stage-winning ambitions.
Vauquelin found himself chasing after being caught behind a split in the peloton approaching the decisive climb. After responding to an attack from Tadej Pogačar, Evenepoel took over the pace-making of a trio made up of himself, the world champion and Jonas Vingegaard.
"The pace was full gas," Vauquelin said to Eurosport after the stage. "I was well-positioned in the wheel of Jonas [Vingegaard], but unfortunately Ilan Van Wilder caused a split in the corner. Because of that I had to sprint from the bottom already.
"I noticed that Remco didn't want me to be there. He [Evenepoel] was afraid, because he rode the entire climb at the front. Not to win the stage, but to gain time in the general classification."
With Evenepoel sitting in second place at 0:54 and Vauquelin sitting at 1:11, third in the general classification, it was an opportunity for Evenepoel to gain time on his nearest competitor.
Vauquelin explained how Evenepoel's tactics disrupted his own chances of successs on the Mur, as he looked to build on his thunderous Tour so far, "That didn't work in my favour," the Frenchman added. "Especially not when Jhonatan Narváez came back before the finish. I couldn't position myself well anymore. And I had made such a hard effort at the bottom that it was simply too far. But I have no regrets. The strongest riders were at the front."
Vauquelin finished seventh on the stage, incidentally right behind Evenepoel, though the pair of them lost the slim margin of two seconds in the general classification to Pogačar and Vingegaard. Vauquelin and Evenepoel are also separated by just 17 seconds in the white jersey standings.
