Pasqua admits he didn't have much power in his legs today and that he's very happy for the opportunity to rest on Monday. Again his focus is to preserve as much energy as possible now in the hope of one final effort in Paris next Sunday. Today was again all about the GC position of teammate Guillaume Martin
Guillaume Martin finished the last stage of the second week well within the reduced peloton. After a fast opening hour, a group of 29 riders went clear without a Wanty-Groupe Gobert rider. Magnus Cort Nielsen was the strongest. Dion Smith, Marco Minnaard and Guillaume Martin finished the stage in the peloton with favourites. Martin will start the third week on Tuesday as 17th in the general classification and second in the youth classification.
Guillaume Martin:
"The start of the stage was very fast, I wanted to be in the break, but did not have a super feeling and I just let go. Afterwards, the stage developed fairly quiet until the foot of the Pic de Nore. There the peloton accelerated and I had a better feeling. I came through the stage without problems. "
"Now the focus shifts to the Pyrenees. My shape is quite irregular. I feel strong at certain times, but that is alternated with lesser moments. I am not in my Dauphiné shape, but I am doing what I can. "
"The upcoming mountain stages are very different: the short, explosive stage scares me a bit. I will watch it day by day and I want to attack in the longer stages."
ASO stage summary:
The second stage of the weekend ended up like the first one with a Tour de France debutant from Astana taking his first stage victory as Magnus Cort Nielsen mimicked Omar Fraile in Carcassonne, also at the end of a long breakaway. For the first time, the Kazakh team claimed back to back victories (since 2007). Magnus Cort Nielsen is the 12th Dane to win a Tour de France stage, 48 years after the first one, Mogens Frey in 1970. Geraint Thomas retained the yellow jersey.
Check back tomorrow for more from inside the peloton at the 2018 Tour de France.
