'Unacceptable' - Chaos and protest at Etoile de Bessèges as teams quit after cars get on the course

The Etoile de Bessèges descended into chaos and protest early on stage 3, with several leading teams deciding to abandon the race due to dangerous conditions and cars driving on the course.

Soudal-QuickStep, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale, EF Education-EasyPost and Uno-X Mobility all refused to race on but other teams raced on.

Ineos Grenadiers have confirmed to Cyclingnews that their riders also abandoned the race.

"The safety of our riders and staff is of paramount importance," said the British team on X. "Following multiple incidents of public vehicles entering the race course our riders, together with other teams, have decided not to complete today’s stage at #EDB25."

"Our team is one of the several that have decided to retire from today’s #EDB25 stage due to several incidents over motor vehicles being allowed onto the race course," Soudal-QuickStep said in a statement.

"We find this unacceptable and decided not to rejoin the stage as we prioritise the safety of our rides and staff."

EF Education-EasyPost said: "Our team, along with several others, has decided to retire from the Étoile de Bessèges due to safety concerns, including the presence of moving vehicles on the race course. The safety of our riders and staff is our top priority."

A car drove into the peloton during stage 2 on Thursday, with riders narrowly avoiding a high-speed collision. Maxim Van Gils (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) crashed and was forced to abandon the race and the incident sparked concerns in the peloton. The dangers of cars on the race route occurred again on Friday, angering the riders.

Late on Friday, the UCI said they have opened an investigation into cars on the race route during stage two and three and suggested that measures are being taken to avoid a repetition of the dangers. The remaining stages of the Étoile de Bessèges are expected to go ahead during the weekend.

Stage 3 was initially neutralised after 17km of racing in the rain when the riders suddenly came face to face with a car on a roundabout. After discussions between rider representatives, race organisers and the UCI officials, it was agreed to neutralise the race for the climb and descent of the Cols des Brousses. However two of the three rider representatives were reportedly in favour of stopping the race, while many of the French riders wanted to continue.

Some riders set off when the stage restarted but other riders instead headed to their buses, ending their race.