Thibaut Pinot positive of a stage win despite "still missing a bit of form"

Thibaut Pinot came to the Tour de France with the goal of taking a stage win, and so far he's been close but without the reward he's been hoping for.

Having finished twice in the breakaways so far at the Tour, on stages 9 and 13 where he finished fourth and third respectively, the Frenchman has been riding close to the front and can feel the win closeby. Yesterday in Mende he played his cards well, but was not enough: “I’m very disappointed, but it was difficult to manage today,” Pinot said. “I don’t have much to regret. I didn’t have great legs, so I tried with what I had. I’m still missing a bit of form, but it’s positive nevertheless," he said.

He was in the day's breakaway and had the legs to be competitive in the climbs, but on the hills of the Massif Central tactics were key and Michael Matthews had them down perfectly. Pinot was nevertheless third on the day after a strong final ascent, but that was not the outcome he was hoping for.

“I was not feeling great at the bottom. I tried to pace myself because my legs were already full of toxins. I made my effort towards the summit with what I had left and couldn’t climb any faster. At the bottom, I wouldn’t even have thought that I could do what I did," Pinot detailed. 

“I know I’m not at my best looking at my power data but I’m fighting. I’m waiting for the Pyrenees, and I think it will be even better there," he concluded. There will be three more mountainous stages where he will have the chance to take a win, however the window is getting narrower for the Groupama - FDJ rider.