The day after Romain Grégoire’s victory in the neighbouring department of Ardèche, the Groupama-FDJ cycling team was unable to repeat the performance on Sunday in the Faun Drôme Classic. Juan Ayuso proved unstoppable and won the race. Further back, Valentin Madouas, still tried his best to go for a top result, but ultimately got fourteenth place of the day after being caught within the last kilometre.
A series of climbs, shorter and longer, featured on the course of the Faun Drôme Classic this Sunday. Up until kilometre 130, they were mostly short, and up until that point, the race was therefore pretty classic, with the peloton in control behind a seven-rider breakaway. However, a first turning point occurred on the descent before the decisive Col de la Grande Limite. A big crash split the peloton in two, which delayed Tom Donnenwirth for Groupama-FDJ, while the battle began a few minutes later on the day’s longest climb (4.6 km at 6%). “The plan was to support Guillaume so that he could take part in the fight with the best in the Col in the Grande Limite,” explained Yvon Caër. “Juan Ayuso and Mathias Skjelmose showed early on that they were the strongest, and Guillaume found himself with about ten riders in chase.” “Ayuso was really the strongest,” confirmed Valentin Madouas. “Then, we tried to manage our effort because there was a big headwind. It was better to keep energy for the final.”
“Valentin is in good shape, that’s the day’s good news”, Yvon Caër
At the top of the biggest climb, the Spaniard and the Dane already seemed out of reach, almost a minute ahead of a small peloton of around thirty men. The riders then got over the Côte des Roberts and the Côte de Grane, where counterattacks occurred, then Valentin Madouas also made a push in the Mur d’Allex, fourteen kilometres from the finish. Although the former French champion could not go solo, this allowed the peloton to bring back some attacks and get back into the fight for the podium. That’s also why the Frenchman went for it again. “I tried to attack 7-8 kilometers from the finish,” he said. “I was alone, but with the headwind, I suffered, and I was caught with 800 metres to go.” “Valentin had to be opportunistic in the end, and he almost succeeded,” said Yvon. “He attacked in Allex, then again with the headwind. Honestly, it was a solid ride. He is in good shape and that’s the day’s good news.” On the other hand, Groupama-FDJ was unable to score a convincing result in the uphill finish. “Guillaume was unable to really go for it after someone hit his derailleur five kilometres from the finish,” explained Yvon. “Brieuc suffered a slow puncture and Thibaud was a bit exhausted.”
Valentin Madouas was therefore the first rider of the team to cross the line, in fourteenth position. “The result is not what we hoped for, but there are plenty of positive things for the future,” assured Yvon. “Everyone did their job, especially Baptiste who handled it like a boss at the start, and Rémi at the bottom of the Col de la Grande Limite. The motivation was the same as yesterday when Romain won, and that’s what we’ll remember from the weekend!”
