"He was 200 meters short of being really well placed" – Puncture ruins Merlier’s chance of victory on stage 8

Soudal – Quick-Step were out of the mix in Stage 8, a sprint that looked tailor-made for Tim Merlier, until a puncture ruined the plan. Merlier, winner of Stage 3, flatted 13 kilometers from the finish and, although he rejoined the bunch, never found the positioning needed to contest the final.

“Tim Merlier had a puncture, and at that point in the race, it was quicker to change the bike directly rather than the wheel,” said Sports Director Tom Steels to Cyclism’Actu. “He had to come in around 8 or 9 kilometers from the finish, and after that with all the turns in the final, it was too difficult to get back to the front of the peloton. He almost got there at the roundabout at 3 km, but I think he was 200 meters short of being really well placed, especially with the effort he made before.”

The team believed the finish was well suited for Merlier. “It's a shame, because such a finish suited him well too, I think. But we'll have another opportunity tomorrow (Sunday). It will be one of the last flat sprints. The wind will be there in the final, and it's sure to be one of our last opportunities for a bunch sprint.”

Steels described the first week of the Tour as unrelenting. “It's a good start to the Tour de France, but very tough and very fast. When you see the average speed... it's very high. Every day has been a big battle, except maybe in Dunkirk and today (Saturday).”

Looking ahead to the mountain stages, Steels said the real tests begin later. “We'll find out more during the 10th stage at Mont-Dore, with 4,500 meters of elevation gain. It will be a very tough stage, and I think important for the general classification. Remco Evenepoel, we'll see day by day, for the moment he's good and strong, he's recovering well. The mountain comes after the rest day. In any case, for the moment everything is going well.”