Christophe Vandegoor on Philipsen-Eenkhoorn dispute: "It was cocky behavior, which was not necessary at the time"

Many opinions and within them criticism for Jasper Philipsen after his actions on stage 18 of the Tour de France. Behaviour which many have seen as 'bullying' against Pascal Eenkhoorn ignited a fire that does not go down despite the Belgian's argument that he has done nothing wrong.

“That was actually it. It was cocky behavior, which was not necessary at the time," Christophe Vandegoor commented on Sporza. "You are in the lead in the points classification and you know that there is a good chance that you will sprint. This was intimidation, getting in the way. Why? That is not necessary."

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In the midst of the stage with the breakaway close, Eenkhoorn attacked from the peloton to try and bridge across to the front. The response was surprising, the green jersey himself sprinted to his wheel and besides him, seemingly talking whilst he then put himself in front of the Dutchman and blocked his path. Immediately commentators and fans on social media criticized the actions.

“I think it was a matter of stress and pressure. They felt they were losing control. It was a perfect scenario with those three riders leading from the start of the stage," Serge Pauwels argued. "If Eenkhoorn hadn't reached the top three, they probably wouldn't have had a chance. But it was not necessary. It wasn't very sporty either. It did ensure that Eenkhoorn was decisive in that attack. He may have said: over my dead body. Because of that fresh force that was added, the breakaway has come to a successful conclusion.”

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Eenkhoorn eventually attacked once again without coverage and led to the breakaway succeeding, perhaps giving reason to Philipsen's fears. However the criticism remained, although the former pro believes the topic will die down, with another sprint stage possible this afternoon into Poligny where many more should have the goal of getting into that breakaway.

“I think Philipsen handled it very well in his interview after the finish. He immediately apologized, which was wise. So that little thing can die a quiet death. These are things that should be avoided. The team management will address him briefly about this. He also knows that he should not have done it," Pauwels said.

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