On stage 2 of the 2024 Tour de Hongrie, Mark Cavendish powered to the stage win ahead of Dylan Groenewegen. A little earlier in the sprint however, Groenewegen forced out Sam Welsford in a move that has been heavily criticised.
Coming into the finale, Astana Qazaqstan Team were best placed at the front of the bunch with Welsford and Groenewegen fighting to be on Cavendish's wheel. Groenewegen won the wheel by force, but not in a totally legal manner as Welsford was dangerous pushed into the curb. Thankfully, Welsford's bike handling skills ensured he stayed upright but the UCI still punished the Team Jayco AlUla sprinter for his recklessness, giving Groenewegen a time penalty of ten seconds and a loss of twenty percent of his points in the points classification.
Post-stage, Welsford's BORA - hansgrohe teammate, Cesare Benedetti reacted strongly. "Comfort zone at Tour de Hongrie riding in the front for our leader Sam who was unfortunately unable to sprint at the end. Considering what happened, I am pretty happy that the win went to Cav. It would have been a shame if Groenewegen crossed the line first," he recapped on his official X (Twitter) account.
Groenewegen is no stranger to controversial sprinting incidents either, having most notably been suspended for nine months due to his role in a horrific crash for Fabio Jakobsen at the 2020 Tour de Pologne.
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