"Things like today shouldn't happen" - Red Bull - BORA Hangrohe's team time trial worry for Evenepoel and Lipowitz at Tour de France

It's no secret that the opening stage of the 2026 Tour de France has been circled and underlined by Red Bull - BORA Hansgrohe as a golden chance to get one of their team leaders into the yellow jersey from the very first day. But after Tuesday's stage of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, they know they've work to do.

The team time trial is sure to dominate headlines in the build-up to the July 4th Grand Depart, with the streets of Barcelona set to form the tracks for the teams to form trains to protect their general classification leaders - before launching them to the finish line as quickly as possible.

For Red Bull, it's an opportunity. With the best time trial rider in the world in Remco Evenepoel at the line, they know with a strong team and fellow leader Florian Lipowitz, there's a good chance to compete for the stage win - and thus the yellow jersey.

But in yesterday's team time trial at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes - a dress rehearsal without the stars of the show Evenepoel and Lipowitz present - things didn't go to plan for the German team. A fifth place finish and "a lot of mistakes" left rider Maxim Van Gils frustrated after the stage.

“I think we didn’t ride a good time trial, to put it bluntly. We made a lot of mistakes along the way. That cannot happen in Barcelona,” Van Gils told Sporza.

The team finished in fifth place, but lost 41 seconds to stage winners Team Visma | Lease a Bike in what was a disappointment for the team. Netcompany Ineos looked strong as they finished nine seconds adrift while EF Education-EasyPost held onto Alex Baudin's yellow jersey with an impressive showing.

Van Gils is preparing to be a part of the team trial unit at the Tour and knows that mistakes won't cut it for the real deal next month - insisting that stress led to changeovers at unplanned moments and in the wrong direction.

"It is allowed here, there is no Remco (Evenepoel) and no Lipo (Florian Lipowitz). But when those guys are there after spending a month at altitude, things like today shouldn't happen."

He added: "I think stress might have gotten the better of some. There were changeovers at the wrong moments and in the wrong direction. In a time trial, you lose a few seconds like that, and in such a short time trial, that shouldn't happen."

The ASO format for team time trials make them even more crucial. The first rider across the finish line for each team sets the team's time for stage win honours. However, every rider's individual time finishing is their time in the general classification, making it crucial for teams with general classification ambitions.

We've seen some teams treat the format as a prolonged lead-out for their GC men, while others have been able to put down strong times while still finishing with numbers. As Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Paul Seixas and Evenepoel all come in with different preparations, fans will only get answers when riders are on the road next month.