Steve Morabito (BMC Racing Team) (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Steve Morabito (BMC) was stripped of stage victory and probable overall race lead on stage three of the Tour de l’Ain after officials deemed the Swiss rider had taken a short cut in the final two kilometres of the stage. Morabito, along with two other riders, was relegated after going the wrong way around a roundabout. The race jury's decision elevated second-place finisher, Maxime Bouet (AG2R La Mondiale) to the victory and kept Morabito from taking the yellow jersey with one day left.
"I attacked to the left side, got a good gap and stayed away to the finish," Morabito said.
"After the race, they told me I was supposed to go to the right around the roundabout. The road was not closed to the left and even the motorbikes were even going that way. I was feeling good today, but not now."
Morabito signed from Astana at the end of last year and the 27-year-old formed part of Cadel Evan’s Tour de France line-up in July. He finished fourth overall in June's Tour de Suisse.
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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.
