“You don’t waste a rider like that" - Armstrong and Hincapie question Lidl-Trek's use of Quinn Simmons
Cycling
Stage 8 of the Tour de France delivered a thunderous sprint
finish and a moment of national pride for Italy. Jonathan Milan, riding for
Lidl–Trek, blasted to his first Tour de France stage win in Laval, marking the
first Italian victory at the race since Vincenzo Nibali in 2019, six years ago.
“This is hard to believe,” Lance Armstrong said on The
Move podcast. “In terms of cycling history, the Italians are probably a
top-three country over the last century… it’s been six years since an Italian
won a stage at the Tour de France.”
What made Milan’s win even more striking was how he did it, largely
alone.
“He was on his own in the final,” said George Hincapie.
“They took him to like 3 or 4K to go, then he was doing it solo. He had to surf
wheels and still found the space to launch. He just muscled through it.”
The Italian’s power is no mystery. Bradley Wiggins noted
that Milan is the world record holder in the individual 4,000m pursuit and an
Olympic gold medalist on the track. That track pedigree showed.
“According to the coverage,” said Armstrong, “he hits 2,000
watts at peak in his sprint. That’s crazy power.”
Spencer Martin added: “They tested him riding with his head
high versus low at 2,000 watts. The difference was a full bike length. That’s
the kind of edge we’re talking about.”
But not everyone was in a celebratory mood. Hincapie was
visibly frustrated with how Milan’s teammate, and American national champion, Quinn
Simmons has been deployed throughout the race.
“I don’t like it one bit,” Hincapie said. “He’s the
strongest breakaway rider in the Tour right now, he can win a stage, and
they’re burning his matches like crazy. Pulling on Stage 1, again today—why are
they putting our national champion on the front all day?”
“He was in the wind
constantly. That’s a guy who can win a stage.”
Simmons, a late addition to the Lidl–Trek lineup after
winning the national championship and a stage at the Tour de Suisse, has
consistently been at the front, either pulling the peloton or in breakaways.
But the hosts questioned whether the team was misusing one of its most
versatile riders.
“Yes, Milan won. But Quinn’s been at or near the front every
day,” Armstrong said. “You don’t waste a rider like that. Not when he’s in this
kind of form.”
The team’s controversial decision to leave Mads Pedersen at
home was also revisited. Milan’s victory may have validated that choice for
now, but it hasn’t silenced questions about the team’s overall plan, or
Simmons' role in it.
There was undoubtedly pressure on Milan’s shoulders to
justify his selection over Mads Pedersen. Remember, Pedersen won four stages
and the points classification at the Giro, and is a top 5 rider in the world in
many expert’s opinions.
As the race heads into Bastille Day and beyond, Armstrong
and his crew expect fireworks, not just from Milan and the sprinters, but also
from the GC battle. The race is yet to truly reach the mountains, but already
Tadej Pogacar leads by around a minute with two stage wins under his belt.
The gap would have been much closer had Vingegaard not
suffered his off day in the time trial on stage 5. But, overall, it has been a
positive start for Visma, especially after stage 8’s sprint where Wout van Aert
came second. With riders like van Aert building form, and teammates like Sepp
Kuss waiting for the high mountains, the second week promises more chances for
the GC men, which should suit Visma.
Fin MajorCycling Journalist
Fin Major is a UK-based writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2024. He is the site’s main writer for FAQs and evergreen explainers and has written around 2,000 pieces for the platform. Alongside this work, he focuses on in-depth analysis and covers the biggest races on the calendar, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, providing clear context around performance trends, tactics, and key storylines.
In his reporting, Fin uses reputable data sources such as ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available. Outside of writing, Fin is an active cyclist, which supports his practical understanding of the sport and its demands.
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- More to the point, it isn't his remaining goal.Renz08-11-2026
- lol yeahmij08-11-2026
- I know, their headlines can be so misleading. Pidcock had a great season with 5 wins. and some solid 2nds. no reason to take away from that with a fake headline.mij08-11-2026
- You can clearly see the the posture change from slightly sitting to again out of the saddle while changing of gears in the video of the sprintabstractengineer08-11-2026
- He has already beaten Pogi twice in the TDF. the achievement is over. He cannot beat Pogi now and he only has a few years left at the top. Win Giro and compete in the TDF, maximise palmares.abstractengineer08-11-2026
- Just looked again at the photo. Yeah I stand by that. If MS had fallen over in Brands direction I don’t even think she would have hit her. You must be a UCI race commissioner. I’ll be sure to check my sock height should I ever see you on a ride. Looks like everyone else on here sees what I see.mij08-11-2026
- I said looking at the photo it doesn’t appear she deviated. Chill out, not stating my word is the final judgement. Just commenting that based on the photo I don’t see it. And BTW the Dutch coach even said she didn’t impede her.mij08-11-2026
- Blah Blah Blah !frieders308-11-2026
- MS said she was changing gears so that caused her slight deviation. Nothing was intentional.frieders308-11-2026
- How can you use a photo post incident to judge the incident itself (which is not hard to find if you’re prepared to invest the same amount of time in searching as writing that comment? It’s harsh but technically right even though this or worse is not always sanctioned in every race. The two things that went against MS (who unfortunately for her would still have won without making her mistake) are that it was not a bunch sprint where there could have been an overlooked incident or mitigating circumstances explaining a deviation. Everything was focused on just those 2, Schreiber was riding beautifully balanced which made her sudden deviation look unnatural stroke as if it could have been in some part intentional whilst she was slowly drifting ever closer towards the barrier to a point that would have reached obstruction level. In her defence, it might have been the realisation she was heading towards that that made her react suddenly and caused the deviation involuntarily. In any case, congratulations to her for the ride of her life, in people’s minds she will be credited for it.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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