Tour de France 2020 - TDF tops and flops: Roglic is sitting pretty, but Sagan shows weakness
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Updated 03/09/2020 at 19:38 GMT
After two slightly anticlimactic days in the saddle, we take a look at the riders making the headlines for the right and wrong reasons.
Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma)
Image credit: Eurosport
The second summit finish of the Tour on Mont Aigoual should have provided multiple talking points but instead saw the battle for yellow fizzle out on the coattails of the Ineos train as lone ranger Alexey Lutsenko took the spoils from the break.
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Stage 6 Highlights - Outstanding Lutsenko, Alaphilippe's panache and a good day for Yates
In the absence of major drama on Thursday, let's take a look at the riders who have shone – and those who have struggled – so far in the 107th edition of the Tour, a race that so far has been far from vintage but could yet age well with the right ingredients.
Top: Primoz Roglic
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Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) in stage 6 of the 2020 Tour de France
Image credit: Getty Images
Sitting pretty in second place in the standings just three seconds shy of Adam Yates's yellow jersey, the Slovenian champion won Stage 4 at Orcieres-Merlette and hasn't really put a foot wrong. What's more, his Jumbo-Visma team have been pretty sensational – most notably the American climber Sepp Kuss, the trusty German powerhouse Tony Martin, and Stage 5 winner Wout van Aert, who's proved himself to be arguably the best rider in the business right now.
Roglic may have yet to be properly tested – and his gap over defending champion Egan Bernal is only the 10 bonus seconds he gained on Tuesday – but winning the first summit finish was a statement of intent, and he looks like he'll only get better. Should he falter, Jumbo-Visma are playing a canny game with Dutchman Tom Dumoulin keeping his powder dry and sitting alongside Bernal in the standings without ever rearing his head. Together they make a formidable duo that could replicate the Ineos one-two from 14 months ago.
Flop: Dani Martinez
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Tour De France: Interview of Daniel Felipe Martinez at Tour de France presentation
Image credit: Eurosport
The man who won the Critérium du Dauphiné when Roglic crashed out last month, Martinez is probably the GC rider who is faring the worst after six days. Already 4'25" down, Martinez has gone from being an equal spike in EF Pro Cycling's three-pronged Colombian attack, to being the third wheel behind Rigoberto Uran and Sergio Higuita.
This may work out well for the team, for whom the experience of Uran and the potential punchiness of Higuita could well have always been the focus behind closed doors. There's no saying that Martinez can't still resurrect his race, but after his Dauphiné win, no one would have seen the 24-year-old being so far out of the GC reckoning before the end of the first week.
Top: Guillaume Martin
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Julian Alaphilippe behind Primoz Roglic and Guillaume Martin in Stage 4
Image credit: Getty Images
The pedalling philosopher has enjoyed a superb start to his first Tour for Cofidis, most notably coming third place in the first summit finish. Martin is currently sitting pretty in fourth in the general classification, which not only gives Cofidis its first viable GC card to play in what seems like an eternity, it also takes the edge off teammate Elia Viviani's cataclysmically poor performances in the sprints.
It was Martin's attack in the climb to Orcieres-Merlette in Stage 4 that finally coaxed Roglic into action and the 27-year-old looks to be in a good position to win the first Tour stage win of his career – and a first for Cofidis for 12 years.
Flop: Franck Alaphilippe
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Julian Alaphilippe takes an illegal bidon from his cousin Franck
Image credit: Eurosport
His victory in Nice saw him take back the yellow jersey he wore for so long in 2019, but the bizarre manner in which Julian Alaphilippe surrendered his lead – on a technicality following an illegal feed in Stage 5 – certainly raised eyebrows. It later emerged that the soigneur who handed over the offending bidon was none other than Alaphilippe's cousin, Franck – a fact which probably saved him from getting the sack.
While the penalty seemed pretty harsh, rules are rules, and both rider and soigneur must have known that their little refuelling manoeuvre was taking place inside the final 20km; they can hardly have too many complaints. It's sad, though, because the 28-year-old will struggle to take back the yellow jersey now – even if his little dart off the front on Thursday earned him a one-second jump on his rivals.
Top: Tadej Pogacar
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Tour De France: Interview of Tadej Pogacar at Tour de France presentation
Image credit: Eurosport
Tour debutant Pogacar is doing his best to get rid of the second-best-Slovenian tag by matching Roglic stroke for stroke. The 21-year-old was first to latch on to Roglic's winning attack in Stage 4 and he has looked calm, composed and experienced beyond his years on the numerous occasions he had picked up untimely mechanicals in the opening week.
A lot may depend on how much support UAE Team Emirates can afford Pogacar going into the Pyrenees and Alps. With David de la Cruz still bashed up from his opening day crash and Fabio Aru still partial for bizarre suicide attacks in the pursuit of a break that won't get caught (see the Col de la Lusette in Stage 6), Pog might have to take on Rog on his own terms.
Flop: Peter Sagan
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Peter Sagan of Slovakia and Team Bora - Hansgrohe
Image credit: Getty Images
One thing we can all agree on is the chink that has appeared in Sagan's green armour. Although he had shown himself capable of getting into breaks to pick up intermediate sprint points – as he did in Stage 2 around Nice – the Slovakian is clearly lacking that final burst when it comes to sprinting with the fastest.
What he does have in his favour is his continued consistency: even off the boil, Sagan has managed three top-fives. Also helping him in his pursuit of an eighth green jersey in nine years is the fact that no one sprinter has shown themselves to be a dominant force: Alexander Kristoff has done nothing outside his Stage 1 win; Caleb Ewan has blown hot and cold; Elia Viviani hasn't won all year; and the man who currently has green, Sam Bennett, is still searching for a maiden Tour stage win.
Sagan could well still win the green jersey by default, by being the sprinter most capable of picking up points over harsh terrain while chipping away with top five finishes. By the same token, all it would take would be a stage win to switch him from flop to top – a much-needed victory that would end his 14-month winless run, the longest he has had to endure in his otherwise illustrious career.
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