Mikel Landa slams ‘idiot’ Simon Yates, Briton says no-one was at fault for crash
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ByEurosport
Updated 14/05/2019 at 20:02 GMT
Movistar rider Mikel Landa has angrily hit out at Mitchelton-Scott’s Simon Yates after a crash on Stage 4 of the Giro d’Italia on Tuesday.
Mikel Landa Meana of Spain and Movistar Team / during the 102nd Giro d'Italia 2019, Movistar Team Press Conference
Image credit: Getty Images
The incident in question happened after a crash at a roundabout around 6km out from the finish line.
Both Landa and Yates were involved and although they both managed to recover and finish the former is now 1”49 down on General Classification leader Primoz Roglic.
Speaking to Spanish journalist Jose Andres Ezquerro of AS, Landa blamed Yates for the incident and did not hold back in his assessment of the Briton.
The F****** Simon Yates is an idiot and he acts like a madman.
“He pulled me down on the roundabout.
“I don’t think it is anything serious, the problem is the time I lost again, now I’m at almost two minutes from Roglic.
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Team Movistar rider Spain's Mikel Landa (C) rides flanked by his teammates during the stage four of the 102nd Giro d'Italia - Tour of Italy - cycle race, 235kms from Orbetello to Frascati on May 14, 2019
Image credit: Getty Images
“It sucks when things that don’t depend on you to happen. In the time trial I had trouble, but today I ended up on the ground because of someone else.
“This is not the start that I wanted. As a matter of fact, my feelings are pretty bad with all these disadvantages."
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Watch Carapaz hold off Ewan to win Stage 4
Speaking to Eurosport’s Matt Stephens after the race Yates said everyone was at fault.
“Everyone was fighting for position on a roundabout with about 6km to go for me and a rider has slid out in front of me and it was nobody’s fault, I’m not blaming anybody, it was just fighting for position and these things happen.
But I got up quickly and had the guys around me to limit losses but of course I would have preferred to be in front.”
Movistar Sporting Director Max Sciandri was vague when asked about the incident by Velon CC as he said that Landa hadn’t filled them in on what had happened.
“Unfortunately he fell, he didn’t say anything on the radio so we’re just going through what happened and trying to assess the situation.”
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