Christian Prudhomme expresses to be in favor of introduction of maximum budgets in cycling: "The race is a bit unbalanced"

The large financial differences in cycling have caused a heated debate. Some (especially traditional French) teams want a more level playing field and are calling for a maximum budget. Tour director Christian Prudhomme agrees that a change might need to come and confirms that UCI is looking into its possibilities.

The French teams complain about an uneven battle, and Prudhomme also sees that they do not have the resources to storm the top. "Having big sponsors is perhaps also what the French teams lack," he says in an interview with Midi Libre. "A study is being carried out by the UCI, together with the organizers and the teams, about the fact that there may be a maximum budget. Because the capital comes mainly from the Arab countries, the race is actually a bit unbalanced. That is an understatement."

Thanks in part to the financial muscle, UAE Team Emirates managed to create a super team that was by far the best in 2024. But the dominance of the team and leader Tadej Pogacar does not make for an uninteresting sport, the Frenchman believes. "We have been lucky that we have been able to enjoy attacks from far away for four or five years. Look at Thibaut Pinot and Julien Alaphilippe... And later there was Van Aert, Van Der Poel, Pogacar, Evenepoel, you name it."

The Tour boss remembers all too well how Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome were dragged over the mountains by their team and then finished the trick in the final kilometre. "I wasn't a fan of the Sky era, where it was completely padlocked and they only attacked with 800 metres to go." The attacking spirit in the recent past gives Prudhomme hope for next year's Tour. "Two years ago we had an absolutely fantastic Tour, last year we had an exceptional one for half the race. I just hope that next year everyone arrives at full capacity."