INEOS suffer another potential Tour de France blow - Vauquelin suffers virus and a bacterial infection as decision made
Cycling
Netcompany INEOS are facing yet another Tour de France headache after it was confirmed that co-leader Kevin Vauquelin suffered a virus and bacterial infection. The French rider, therefore, will not be starting the National Championships this week as both he and the team focus on recovery ahead of the Grand Boucle.
Pegged to arrive at the Barcelona Grand Depart on July 4th as co-leader alongside Oscar Onley, Vauquelin will be hoping he can shake off illness in time to be ready for the Tour. however, the news will not be welcomed by INEOS or Director of Racing Geraint Thomas.
The Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes saw Vauquelin pick up the infection, and was also the scene of a worrying moment for the team. Co-leader Onley suffered a crash on the sixth stage and nearly suffered a catastrophic fall - with a tree saving him for a deep fall after coming off the road on a descent.
Vauquelin admits difficult decision but "health comes first"
“Unfortunately, I won’t be able to compete in the French championships," Vauquelin said on social media.
"A virus and a bacterial infection, which I contracted during the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Tour, are further weakening me. The team and I have decided to skip the championships to prepare for the Tour de France. It was a difficult decision, but health comes first."
Onley returned to team camp just a few days after his crash, but Onley's preparation and recovery is unclear. The team now face a race against time to prepare their team leaders as they aim to compete for the podium next month.
Geraint Thomas on Onley's crash
"I think it was a left-hander, he just overshot slightly," director of racing Geraint Thomas told Cyclingnews about Onley's crash. "We’re staying positive. It could have been much worse."
The crash was not caught by any of the television cameras, so further details come from Onley's rescuers, in particular Team Visma | Lease a Bike DS Frans Maassen.
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"We only saw his bike, and a few meters further on, we looked into a very deep ravine. It must really have been one of the last trees he ended up in," Maassen shared with Wielerflits.
"Our men from the team car, together with people from the organization, were able to very carefully hoist him back up from that tree. In that regard, he was incredibly lucky. It could have ended much worse."
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- It doesnt take a genius to understand that Pogi is 1 level above and Pogi is younger that Jonas, so Jonas will not win under ordinary circumstances. Pogi has to crack hard for Jonas to win. It doesn't matter whether you defend Jonas or not , facts remain facts. Jonas himself says his numbers are better than 2022/2023, so Jonas is more or less optimized and we are just see the stochastic variation due to other factors. I think he will retire along with Pedersen in WC denmarkabstractengineer13-11-2026
- They only raced each other during the 2026 Tour, but here's a few metrics to look at. Stage 3 (Granollers to Les Angles): Pogačar won the stage, finishing 2 seconds ahead of Vingegaard (2nd). Del Toro finished 24 seconds behind Stage 6 (Pau to Gavarnie-Gedre / Col du Tourmalet): Pogačar won solo, Vingegaard finished 2nd (losing 2:38), and Del Toro finished 3rd (at +2:57, finishing 19 seconds behind Vingegaard). Here, Jonas Vingegaard outclimbed Isaac del Toro by 19 seconds on the mountain stageawp13-11-2026
- your clinging to the past. Jonas was dropped by del toro many times last year and jonas never managed a climbing numers del toro did in dauphine last year -entire year. Trend is also evident theres no discussion your living in the past, its beent he same with jonas for many years now and only developing, meanwhile del toro is rising and developing greatly. This is all obvious stuff and im not even a del toro fan. No point discussing numbers or this i suspect you dont watch much now but rather think its 2022 still cause this aint hard.miguel13-11-2026
- We can go through metrics if you like, Del Toro, who I do admire and support, is not on the same level as Jonas just yet. You will see that in early 2027 if they have any crossover races. I do hope they both race the Giro. You are correct though, Jonas is getting older and will not be able to hand on much longer. I see 2027 as a good year for him. Obviously behind Tadej though.awp13-11-2026
- What wins? Are you LA operating under a pseudonym?mij13-11-2026
- My point is this - Tadej, Remco, Seixas are all the outliers. Many riders don’t hit their peak until 28. It’s way too early to write him off. And the pogi slo guy that hates him - he’s also immature. Ayuso needs time.mij13-11-2026
- Then you need to use ur eyes or head if you have cause del toro already dropped jonas two times and beat him in tdf stages already this year.. Del toro climbed(dauphine) better numbers than jonas did all year too. So ur feelings and wishful thinking doesnt amtter del toro himself has already surpassed jonas infact just facts. Its also very evident for anyone objective that Jonas is declining alot, its just the truth and super obvious.miguel13-11-2026
- None of those victories stand, so there's that,wrsty13-11-2026
- No surprise there; it is British Sycling, yes, with an S
Rafionain-Glas12-11-2026 - I like Del Toro but he's not on the level of Jonas, by a large margin.awp12-11-2026
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