“We used up a lot of bullets” - Alex Baudin admits EF paid price to defend yellow at Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Alex Baudin kept the yellow jersey at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, but stage 2 made clear how quickly life changes once a breakaway winner becomes a race leader.

One day after taking the biggest victory of his career in Saint-Ismier, the EF Education-EasyPost rider spent the longest stage of the race watching his teammates chase, manage and calculate behind a dangerous breakaway on the road to Le Puy-en-Velay. Anthon Charmig eventually took the stage win for Uno-X Mobility, but Clement Braz Afonso’s presence in the move meant EF could never allow the gap to drift completely out of reach.

Baudin admitted afterwards that the day had been far from comfortable, even if he was able to enjoy his first stage in yellow.

“Yeah, I enjoyed it a bit, but it was still a bit of a grind today. It was very, very long. I think by the end, everyone was a bit dead,” Baudin said in conversation with Cycling Pro Net.

The key challenge for EF came early. On a 230-kilometre stage, they could not afford to control every attack rider by rider, but once the breakaway had formed, they had to make sure the yellow jersey did not slip away.

Baudin said the team had been fortunate with the composition of the move, while also crediting Decathlon CMA CGM Team for helping calm the race once the break had gone. “I think we were more lucky than anything else, because we couldn’t afford to filter riders on a 230-kilometre stage like that,” he explained. “If you start choosing one by one who goes in the breakaway, it leads nowhere.”

Clement Braz Afonso, who started the day 5:35 behind Baudin, became the main danger. Once the gap pushed beyond six minutes, he briefly moved into the virtual race lead, forcing EF to keep the chase alive without burning through the whole team too early.

Baudin felt they handled that balance well. “We managed it really well, I think,” he said. “We used Max and Alastair for the first 150 kilometres, and they really held it well against ten guys up front who were rotating. It wasn’t easy in that slightly downhill section with a bit of headwind.”

EF later still had Georg and Michael available to lift the pace when required, giving Baudin enough security before the finale. “We tightened things up a little to give ourselves that safety margin, and then with the tension in the finale, the other teams also made it accelerate. So in the end, we had enough margin,” he added.

The effort came at a cost. Stage 3 brings a team time trial, and Baudin knows EF have already spent heavily to keep him in yellow after only two days of racing. “Of course, we’re going to try,” he said when asked about defending the jersey again. “I think we used up a lot of bullets today, but I think the yellow jersey will carry us tomorrow.”

That line captured EF’s position after a draining day. They have the race lead, a stage victory and a clear reason to commit, but the jersey is already demanding energy from a squad that had to work hard almost immediately after taking it.

For Baudin, though, the responsibility is still something to embrace. He had waited a long time for a WorldTour breakthrough and now gets to carry yellow into one of the most important tests of the week. “Yes, of course. It’s an honour to wear this jersey at the Dauphine, so I’m enjoying it for as long as it lasts,” he said.

Baudin survived the first defence. The next one will ask a different question of EF, with the team time trial set to show whether the yellow jersey can carry them again.