Despite another strong lead-out from Mathieu van der Poel, Jasper Philipsen was once again unable to finish off the job on stage 8 of the Tour de France, losing out in the final sprint due to "hesitating", according to his team.
Heading into the last 400 metres in Bergerac, Philipsen was perfectly positioned on the Dutchman's wheel, but as the rush came from behind him, the Belgian got swamped and was beaten by Tim Merlier, Biniam Girmay, and Olav Kooij.
They've been one of the most dominant forces in sprints at the Tour for almost five years running, but the wait for their first win at the 2026 will have to go on. Philipsen just isn't firing on all cylinders, and the team think that the defeat on Friday's stage 7 into Bordeaux also played a part.
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"The leadout was good, and Jasper could not finish it off once again, just like yesterday. Clearly, then the feeling that results from that is disappointment for him, for us, and for the complete team, of course," said team co-owner Philip Roodhooft at the team bus.
"It's clear that he hesitated after not winning yesterday. There was some hesitation in the beginning, and then Merlier came from behind with a lot of speed. When Jasper started the sprint, it was already too late to be able to compete to fight for the victory."
As Roodhooft faced the media to explain the loss, his brother Cristoph also spoke just metres away, with Philipsen not available for interview due to doping control. In typical Belgian fashion, they were honest but stern, not losing faith in their sprinter, who has had slow starts at the Tour in the past.
Asked if his preparation in the spring had anything to play in his evident lack of top speed at the moment, Roodhooft said: "It's very easy to look for that kind of explanation now after he didn't win twice, and then next week if he wins, also that theory can go into the bin.
"I think it's way too early to draw conclusions, and also the year before, Jasper worked to be good in the Classics, and then was very strong in the sprints in the Tour de France.
"We have no doubts about the preparation. We have no doubts about the potential. Everybody has seen that the team, as a whole, the lead-out, is strong enough, more than strong enough to bring him where he has to be, and we're still very confident that it will lead to a stage win for Jasper in the end."
In 2022, Philipsen didn't win until stage 15 before doubling up on the Champs-Élysées. Two years later, he didn't get off the mark until stage 10, then added two more before the end of the race. Philipsen has won 10 stages at the Tour throughout his career – Alpecin are far from panicking yet.
Philip Roodhooft did look to the positive of Van der Poel's improving form. Having started the race saying he was away from his best level, the Dutchman has shown in these past two lead-outs that the legs and the sharpness are coming quickly. Don't be surprised to see him in the breakaway and firing as soon as tomorrow's heat-shortened stage to Ussel.
"It would be complicated if there were no lead-out, if Mathieu were not good, then you get closer to panic, but now we see that the process is there," Roodhooft told Cyclingnews.
"Jasper hasn't been able to finish it off – that's also clear, we're not blind to that, but the confidence is still there, and of course now it's twice in a row he doesn't win, but he has lost a lot of sprints already in the Tour de France.
"But he has also won 10, so we still believe he will win at this Tour de France, and we see no reason to doubt that."
Philipsen, Van der Poel, and the whole Alpecin train will likely get their next chance to right the wrongs of stages 7 and 8 into Nevers on Wednesday. They are running out of opportunities fast, though, and Merlier will be hard to knock off of top spot with his confidence at an all time high.
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