This is the WORST Thing to Happen to a Top Sprinter | Tour de France 2025 Stage 8

Lanterne Rouge presents highlights of Tour de France 2025 Stage 8.

Become a channel member | https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC77UtoyivVHkpApL0wGfH5w/join​

Join the discord | https://discord.gg/K8tXjnczWj

For more in-depth professional cycling analysis check out the Lanterne Rouge Cycling Podcast | https://www.youtube.com/c/LanterneRougeCyclingPodcast

Twitter | https://twitter.com/LanterneRougeYT
Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/the_lanterne_rouge_/
Website | https://www.lanternerouge.com

Credits:
Footage | Amaury Sport Organisation
Photos | Cor Vos (unless stated otherwise)

The second weekend of the tour to France begins with or has two sprint stages. This one with a headwind for the most part. Would we even see a breakaway? There has been so few sprint opportunities and there will be even fewer sprint opportunities that the teams like Little Trek who missed out on stage one in the crosswinds and are all in for Jonathan Milan’s green jersey. They’re not going to let this opportunity pass and there’s a lot of UCI points available at the finish. So with that wind direction, slightly warm conditions and Jah Almeida regaling Enri Jorgensson of how the crash happened yesterday. Good to see that the Portuguese rider could start today and actually seem to get through the stage reasonably well. Uh but yeah, would anyone when the race director actually said it’s time to go go on the break? The answer was no because in Mare they were on the front. Quinn Simmons for Little Trek in the Styles and Struts was on the front. Total Energies Inos and Arca try one move it shut down and then everyone says well what’s the point and we’ll just let Yonas Roach and Quinn Simmons pace because it’s going to be a sprint anyway for the GC guys a little bit more relaxed today probably the most relaxed actually for the first at least two and a half hours at this stage was even this is about a K and a half from the first intermediate sprint you can see Wanty and Simony Cons and Milan laughing the sprinters were even a bit relaxed because there’s not many people going for the green jersey competition ition and actually we see UAE moving up on the right hand side. I’ll get back to that in a second. Wanty wait too late to actually launch their last man. Milan gets the jump on them. He brings over Tes who boxes in Binnie Mer seems to just open his legs but not actually try to do the maximum to win the sprint. He’s just keeping himself in the competition. And then curiously after the intermediate sprint, Total Energies try to go on the breakaway. It’s a Saturday in France. You know they’re a French team. They want to go on the breakway. Mark is controlling. Why you a sprinter? And it’s for Tim Wellens. There’s one KO point available and if there’s no breakaway at all, Tim Wellens can take that K point. So I don’t know if Tim Wellens just wants to extend his days in the polka dot jersey or they’re really going to go for it with him. But that was somewhat curious. Total energy eventually say well stuff you all we’re going to be allowed to go on the breakaway and they do a team attack with Matteo Versier and Matthew Burgdo that eventually does get a gap and they’re allowed to take at a maximum about a minute and 10 seconds whilst Little Trek still keep controlling. There’s a few crashes throughout the stage. Mark Sair comes down but he seemed to be pretty much okay. Um no visible scratches or rips to his shorts or anything. Got back on the bike and was pedaling very quickly straight after. At 30ks to go, the complexion of the pelon changes though. Judah to the front, Vizma to the front with Yonas Fingerard, Cockard to the front with Coffetus, Jacob to the front, Pagata chilling more in the back of the Pelaton on the one hill of the day. Total Energies take the point and they also get the double combative prize for the day which is welld deserved. Johnny Milan kept forward and Tim Mer his main adversary for the sprint has a illtime mechanical at 12 and a halfks to go. Will he come back? Nens has a crash. What happened? He’s got a flat. He’s got a flat tire. He’s got his hand up. He’s asking for service. But like when Pagatcha crashed before Aopa when he turns in on the flat tire, he crashes here. And in fact, Pagatcha’s just behind him on some Jacob or and Picnic riders. He had enough braking room anyway. But um luckily no one else crashed. But yeah, it seemed to be that the you he just wasn’t able to turn on that tire. There were some downhills, more uh punctures for Penway. He wouldn’t be able to come back in time. The group FDJ rider Alperson lineup with Vomesh on the right hand side. Tim Mery could he made it back quickly but how much energy did it cost and will he be able to move up? The answer was no. He wasn’t really able to move up into position. So with 5ks to go you see Vingard waving the sprinters to go in front. It’s time for the sprinters to take over with the 5k rather than 3k rule today. But a difference in this sprint from what I normally expect is Alperson went to the front very very early. They’ve got Rickart, Vanderpool, and then they’re going to sprint with Groves, but three lead outs with 3.8Ks to go, especially as the finish of this is a bit uphill. It’s not a flat finish. It’s like 1,200 m at 4% with some steeper sections in there, but there’s a downhill beforehand. And the two strongest leadouts in this race, Tre and Alperson, use up all their bickies on that downhill section. I mean, crazy that 2ks to go. There’s a downhill roundabout at 80ks an hour. But anyway, maybe Treker decided it’s better to keep Milan in good position. Groves tries to move up here. There’s no real need to move up. It’s still pretty far from the finish and he tries to dive bomb onto Vanderpull’s wheel through the roundabout. Milan comes back in on him. There’s nearly a big crash. So, pretty dangerous move from Groves. I would say lucky that Milan didn’t crash. Bow House was seeing his life flash before his eyes and actually it nearly ruined his own sprint. Maybe it did ruin his own sprint rather than just having stayed in the original position he was in. And so Treker early Consan is normally the last man. Sturan’s thought the only guy left for Milan with 1.1ks to go. Trenton sees that on the right hand side and there’s so many sprint leadouts that wash over in this uphill. It’s probably have been better for the legs. The two riders who do the best in this sprint were already in position for that uphill. And so moving up on the uphill costs a lot of energy rather than on a downhill if you come on the wheel of your lead out from the back. But Milan just surfs. He goes left onto the group armor FDJ train boxes Vanderpool off that. He has to go back and find Groves. It looks like Vanart’s going to contest his sprint. Dynazy takes I think Sbart off the wheel of Milan is Vandenberg coming up the inside. But here we have two leadouts with 565 to go that wash over the top of group armor and potentially box in Milan if he gets pinched. Israel Premier on the left with Stewart who won Adopane stage actually beating Milan. So somewhat curious he’s leading out Akaman here. He maybe hesitates a bit too long and he doesn’t bring Akaman onto the wheel of Groves. Vanderpool had launched on the left hand side. Milan’s got himself into a perfect position. He goes to launch here. He goes to launch from far and then stops. sits back down again because Vanderbil’s still doing a pretty strong lead out and I guess Akaman’s able to fill the space. There was a potential that someone could jump in but I guess it was uphill. So when Venard tries to do that, Milan already launches. Groves gets left flatfooted on the inside and when Milan doesn’t get boxed in when he’s able to surf wheels like that. Nobody except for maybe Tim Moly from his wheel can beat him. But yeah, it was curious to see him stop start his sprint and you can see Vanard’s thinking about launching into the open space after Milan sat down, but he launched at the same time as Groves and uh and Milan Akaman comes I think fourth in the draft. Dynazi, he wasn’t really competitive. He was a bit it’s an uphill sprint as well, not his forte. Binnie though comes 19th so no points for him in the green jersey competition. Milan wins head of Vanard Groves, Akmand Dele Lund, Dandreasen, Cockard, Dynazi, Albanazi and then Fredim. Here’s what the big Italian sprinter had to say. Yeah, we was really close in the last stage. I mean, not in the first one, but in the third one, we was pretty close to the victory. Uh we know that we just just uh went a bit too early, but today, you know, we was really focused. We was really believing in it. Uh just my guys did an amazing Yeah. an amazing job until the final. It was a really tough uh yeah final I have to say a bit stressful but I was not expecting so was dragging up so much the the last kilometer kilometer and a half. I know that I had to wait as long as that I could but yeah I like this kind of finals uh was really really happy for the work that we did. We really deserve it. In terms of the yellow jersey, no issues today for any of the main contenders. So no changes in the ranking. In terms of the green jersey, uh Milan takes the full 50 points plus 20 at the intermediate. So he is now about 30 points ahead of T Pagato. And we’ve got another sprint stage with 50 points on offer tomorrow as well as an intermediate sprint early. Will Malia have better luck? He’ll be hoping for it tomorrow. Hope you enjoy the video. I see you then. Chowo chow.