"You can also imagine that Remco would immediately be scared" - Patrick Lefevere reacts to brutal Criterium du Dauphine crash and Evenepoel
Cycling
Soudal - Quick-Step were enjoying their day in the yellow jersey at the Criterium du Dauphiné, trying to save as much energy as possible before entering the mountains but things didn't go as planned. Remco Evenepoel, race leader, was one of the three riders of the team that has crashed and Patrick Lefevere reacts to the news of the day.
“I got an update from our team doctor, and it looks like it will remain bumps and bruises. From our team, only Antoine Huby needs some stitches, but that is not super urgent," Lefevere said in an interview with Sporza. “But it is not fun. You can also imagine that Remco would immediately be scared and reach for his shoulder after a crash like that, after what he experienced in the Basque Country. But it looks like it will be okay.”
Whilst it is not yet confirmed, Evenepoel should be able to start stage 6, although he took a hit on the head and on the very same shoulder which he fractured almost exactly two months ago at Itzulia Basque Country. Mikel Landa and Antoine Huby of the Belgian outfit also hit the deck, part of a long list of riders who found themselves affected by a very wet and slippery patch of road into Saint-Priest - on the outskirts of Lyon.
“Nobody is to blame here, not the organizers and not the riders," Lefevere believes. "The jury had even taken a measure to record the times 4 kilometers from the finish instead of 3, because it was dangerous there. Everything was well indicated, the riders were not riding super fast and had the breakaway within range."
"Five kilometres before, the streets were still dry, but look, one rain shower was enough to take down the peloton. They fall at the front, they get scared at the back and go over the top. Then you get a chain reaction.”
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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🏁 Le peloton a rejoint la ligne d'arrivée à Saint-Priest. Tout le monde va pouvoir panser ses plaies avant de se lancer à l'assaut du triptyque montagnard de cette fin de semaine. 🏁 The peloton reached the finish line in Saint-Priest. Everyone will be able to lick their wounds
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