Tour de France: Cavendish and Martin left empty-handed despite Etixx-QuickStep’s might

Despite a commanding team performance, Etixx-QuickStep were left empty-handed after an ultimately disappointing day at the Tour de France. Mark Cavendish missed out on the stage win to Andre Griepel (Lotto Soudal) and Tony Martin saw the yellow jersey slip through his fingers and go to arch rival Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing).

Stage 2 from Utrecht to Zelande had Etixx-Quickstep written all over it. From the flat parcours to the enveloping route with battering crosswinds – the only thing that would have made the Belgian team more at home would have been if team manager Patrick Lefevere had laid down the laminate QuickStep tiles on the route the night before.

Two opportunities missed but 19 more to come.

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Daniel Benson

Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.