“Young riders don’t care about the rules… the tension is constant” - French pro sounds alarm after life-threatening crash

The growing sense of danger in the professional peloton has been thrust back into focus at the start of the 2026 season, with one French rider warning that tension inside the bunch has reached a constant and dangerous level.

Damien Touze, who narrowly survived a horrific crash at the Tour of Oman in February, believes the behaviour of riders in the peloton has changed dramatically. Speaking to Le Parisien, the Cofidis rider suggested the pressure to hold position and deliver results is pushing riders into increasingly risky situations.

“Before, there was perhaps more respect in the peloton,” Touze explained, noting that in earlier eras there were established figures who helped enforce an unwritten order inside the bunch. “Before there were leaders in the peloton who dictated the rules. Now, a lot of young riders arrive wanting to make their place, and they don’t care about the rules. The tension is constant. Everything goes faster. Too fast.”

The comments carry particular weight coming from Touze. His crash in Oman occurred at high speed after he lost control of his bike and slammed into roadside barriers. The impact caused severe internal injuries, including a perforated intestine and ruptured spleen, forcing emergency surgery and leaving his season effectively over before spring had even begun.

Touze later admitted he feared for his life during the ordeal, making his warnings about the increasingly aggressive nature of racing impossible to dismiss as routine frustration.

His concerns come as the European season has already produced a string of high-profile crashes.

Opening Weekend in Belgium delivered chaotic racing conditions, with Omloop Het Nieuwsblad alone recording 39 riders abandoning after a crash-filled edition. The following day’s Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne also saw heavy incidents, including a race-ending fall for UAE Team Emirates - XRG rider Tim Wellens that later required surgery.

Even riders who escaped serious injury described a peloton riding on the edge, with constant battles for position ahead of cobbled sectors and other key moments in the race.

Groupama FDJ manager Marc Madiot believes the sport is approaching a dangerous tipping point. “We are sitting on a powder keg,” he warned in an RMC discussion, describing what he sees as an increasingly volatile dynamic in the bunch. “It’s a war for points, a war for places, a war for positions. The first thing riders say after the race on the bus is: ‘Guys don’t brake anymore.’”

For Madiot, the problem is not caused by one single factor but by a combination of pressures shaping the modern peloton. Riders are fighting harder than ever for UCI ranking points, equipment allows them to brake later and carry more speed, and the margins between success and failure continue to shrink.

The result, he believes, is racing that has become both faster and more volatile.

Touze believes another element is the economic pressure facing younger riders entering the professional ranks. “Before, you turned professional, and you were paid the minimum,” he explained. “Today, at 18 years old, if someone gets a top ten or wins a race with the pros, people say he’s a gem, and he signs for a lot of money.”

According to the Frenchman, that expectation creates an environment where riders feel they must perform immediately, often forcing them to take risks in the peloton. “When they arrive in the pro peloton, they know they have to be good straight away to earn money. Inevitably that leads to more risk.”

Those warnings arrive just as the Classics season begins to intensify. With the Belgian races already producing chaotic scenes and Strade Bianche approaching, the sport’s most dangerous terrain still lies ahead.

For Touze, the issue is no longer theoretical. After a crash that nearly cost him his life, the escalating tension in the peloton is something he has experienced in the most brutal way possible.