Riders trade punches as Vuelta tensions run high

Frenchman Nacer Bouhanni, who practises boxing in his spare time, might regret abandoning the Tour of Spain which has turned into a boxing ring on wheels.
The peloton rides through the town of Crickhowell in Wales during stage three of the Tour of Britain. Picture: PAThe peloton rides through the town of Crickhowell in Wales during stage three of the Tour of Britain. Picture: PA
The peloton rides through the town of Crickhowell in Wales during stage three of the Tour of Britain. Picture: PA

On Monday, Russian Ivan Rovny and Italian Gianluca Brambilla traded punches without getting off their bikes, with Tinkoff-Saxo rider Rovny having to change sunglasses after being hit in the face. Both riders were thrown out of the Vuelta by race commissaires even though some found the sanction harsh. After all, they were not the first ones to fight on the bike.

Oleg Tinkov, owner of the Tinkoff-Saxo team, wrote on Twitter: “To eject out of La Vuelta both boxers Rovny and Brambilla is definitely bad decision, I don’t mind when boys are fighting, as in hockey. SHOW.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The fight was witnessed by race commissaires, who apparently did not see Spain’s Joaquim Rodriguez punch Ireland’s Philip Deignan in the face on Sunday.

“Going over the top of the penultimate climb on Sunday, I had my team leader Chris Froome behind me and was moving up to get into the wheels of the Tinkoff-Saxo train at the front, which I was perfectly entitled to do,” Deignan wrote in a column on the Irish Independent’s website yesterday.

“As we hurtled along in the rain at around 50kph, Katusha’s Spanish team leader Joaquin Rodriguez, who is fourth overall, took umbrage to my presence and nudged me out a little bit. So I held my ground and nudged him back,”

“As we continued riding, suddenly, out of the blue, Rodriguez turned towards me and punched me full in the face, splitting my lip and leaving me both stunned and fuming.”

Deignan said he restrained himself. “Thankfully an immediate desire to knock the little Spanish climber out was quelled and I had the restraint and presence of mind to realise that hitting him in such treacherous conditions would only worsen the situation and endanger the riders around us.”

Deignan said Rodriguez was brought to his team bus by his sports director to apologise on Monday morning. “It was more a gesture saying ‘What are you doing?’,” a Katusha press officer said to explain the incident. “He did not mean to touch him.” Tension can run high on the bike, especially between sprint specialists in the final straight.

On Thursday, Argentine Maximiliano Richeze elbowed Italian Jacopo Guarnieri in the final sprint of the Vuelta’s 12th stage.

In 2010, Australian Mark Renshaw was disqualified from the Tour de France for headbutting New Zealand’s Julian Dean in the run-up to the final sprint.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

This year, Mark Cavendish escaped sanctions despite headbutting Australian Simon Gerrans in the stage one sprint, which saw the Briton crash and eventually pull out of the race.

Spain’s Carlos Barredo and Portuguese Rui Costa featured in the most infamous fight of recent times after a stage of the 2010 Tour de France. Barredo took his front wheel off his bike and used it to hit Costa, who punched him back as the two riders, who only got a fine, finished the fight on the ground and had to be separated by team members and reporters.

Contador sits out of world challenge

Tour of Spain overall leader Alberto Contador will miss this month’s world championships because the route does not suit him, the Spaniard said yesterday.

“The route does not suit me so I prefer to give my spot to another rider,” Contador said on the last rest day of the Tour of Spain, which he leads with a one minute 36 seconds advantage over compatriot Alejandro Valverde.

The world championships are in Ponferrada, Spain from 21-28 September. The men’s course only features two short climbs.

Meanwhile, Italy’s Edoardo Zardini emerged triumphant from the gruelling climb of The Tumble to claim victory in stage three of the Tour of Britain yesterday and the overall leader’s yellow jersey.

Nicolas Roche (Tinkoff-Saxo) had moved ahead of Zardini (Bardiani-CSF) as the pair battled at the front on the summit finish.

But the Irishman was subsequently overtaken by his rival, who exhibited perfect timing as he broke clear to win by nine seconds.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Roche eventually came in third, 11 seconds back, with Pole Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) taking second place.

Dylan Teuns, of Belgium, (BMC Racing Team) was fourth, while defending champion Sir Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky) was fifth, 14 seconds back.

The Briton has now moved from ten to 24 seconds off the top in the general classification, which sees Zardini 13 seconds clear of second-placed Kwiatkowski.

Related topics: