The day after his fine third place on the prologue, Sam Watson almost repeated it on Friday, on the first road stage of the Tour de la Provence. In Martigues, after a messy final in the rain, the young Briton took part in the sprint and eventually took fourth! Like the day before, Mads Pedersen claimed victory while the gaps remained similar as there were no bonus seconds and with the time being taken with five kilometres to go due to the dangerous finish.
From Aix-en-Provence to Martigues, there are only some fifty kilometers, but with a detour inland, the Tour de la Provence peloton had to cover 157 on Friday on the race’s first road stage. A few rolling climbs featured on the route, but the day’s real difficulty was the weather conditions. “We expected a bunch sprint and we wanted to be there with Matt Walls,” said Thierry Bricaud. “The day was hard because it never stopped raining, but we could avoid issues for a major part of the stage.” A breakaway including Kevin Avoine (Van Rysel-Roubaix), Alexis Gougeard (Cofidis), Thomas Bonnet (TotalEnergies), Alexis Guérin (Philippe Wagner-Bazin), Robin Plamondon (CIC U Nantes Atlantique) and Jonathan Couanon (Nice Métropole Côte d’Azur) led the race for a long time, but their gap never exceeded two minutes and a half. In the last hour of racing, the peloton got closer and closer, and the Groupama-FDJ cycling team also repositioned in the front rows to stay out of trouble.
“Matt punctured with three kilometers to go”, Thierry Bricaud
Twenty kilometers from the finish, a trio was still leading with a one-minute gap, but the pack seriously paced up to bring it all back together before the last five kilometers, where the official times were taken. “Even before the decision was made, we knew that it was a very dangerous finish,” said Thierry. “I think that when they designed the course, they thought more of the beautiful footage than of the riders’ safety. The finale was very tricky, even more so in the rain. It was a smart decision to take the times at five kilometers, but it’s a shame because it also changes the race since there were no bonus seconds either.” In the last ten kilometres, Groupama-FDJ took the lead in the bunch and especially set the pace on the last small hill of the day. At the summit, and before heading to Martigues, two men passed the five kilometre “virtual” line with a four-second lead. “The idea was not to lose time in the general, then to join in the sprint. It was 100% for the sprint today,” said Thierry.
Unfortunately, the plans went wrong as they approached Martigues. “We experienced a slightly complicated final with two punctures in fifteen kilometres,” explained Thierry. “First with Eddy Le Huitouze, who returned at the last minute, then with Matt who punctured with three kilometres to go. It was over for him at that point. We were going for him, they were in a good position together after the hill, and so it’s a shame but it’s part of the game.” The day did not end with this frustration, however. “We know that Sam likes to fight for position and likes these weather conditions,” added Thierry. “He was there to set Matt up, but once he knew he was on his own, he did his sprint and did very well.” In a good position in the last two kilometres, and particularly in the last corner, the young Englishman was able to make his sprint and took fourth place behind Mads Pedersen, Axel Zingle and Riley Pickrell, who beat him at the photo -finish. “It was very wet today, but I seem to quite like it,” said Sam. “The plan was to sprint for Matt, but unfortunately, he punctured, and we made a real quick decision to sprint for me. It is a nice fourth place, we rode really well all day, and to make a decision as quickly shows that we ride as a unit as well”.
“It can be completely chaotic”, Thierry Bricaud
With no bonus seconds at stake today, Sam Watson remained third overall, ten seconds behind Mads Pedersen. All of his teammates were also given the same time as the Dane this Friday. “Tomorrow, the profile will be harder,” Thierry predicted. “It won’t be easy to manage the wet downhills either. We know that Pedersen is stronger if it comes down to a bunch sprint, and for that reason, a lot of riders will be willing to be on the move. We’ll need to be opportunistic. It can be completely chaotic”.
