"Every morning you wake up expecting to feel better, but at some point you start to think: it's never going to get better."
Good morning,
These are today's quotes and interviews worth your time.
Stood out to me today: "The days when I ever dreamed of winning a big race like this, those are long gone."
¡Vamos!
🎤 INTERESTING INTERVIEWS
"It is an ill-considered action that puts riders in danger."
Christophe Impens on the crash caused by a climate activist at the Ronde Van Brugge - Tour of Bruges
The Ronde Van Brugge - Tour of Bruges had been running cleanly until the final kilometers, when climate activist Wouter Mouton stepped onto the cobbled Brieversweg section and waited for the race director's car to pass before sitting down on the road. He appeared to be planning to glue his hands to the cobblestones: when searched, he was found in possession of adhesive. Motorcycle marshals urged him to move, and he eventually did, but the braking reaction in the peloton was already underway. Several riders went down, including UAE Team Emirates-XRG's Sebastian Molano and Julius Johansen.
"It is an ill-considered action that puts riders in danger, and this in a race where everything had been safe until that point," Christophe Impens of organizer Golazo told HLN. "But there was still one individual who managed to make it dangerous. Fortunately, there are no serious injuries." Golazo filed a complaint against Mouton and called on other affected teams — including those from XDS Astana Team, Uno-X Mobility, and Decathlon CMA CGM — to do the same.
UAE Team Emirates-XRG Assistant Sports Director Fabio Baldato confirmed Molano suffered back pain and abrasions, adding that Julius Johansen's injuries also appeared minor. Mouton, who has a history of similar interventions — previously running across the finish line at Liège-Bastogne-Liège behind Remco Evenepoel and appearing at the Ronde van Vlaanderen finish — was arrested.
Impens was direct about what the team hoped for next: "We hope he is placed under administrative detention and given house arrest." That appears to have happened: Mouton was judicially arrested, and his chances of being free in time for Thursday's women's edition look slim.
"Training with him is almost like a game."
Carlos Verona on working alongside Juan Ayuso — and on Lidl-Trek's bigger picture
Ahead of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, Carlos Verona spoke to Marca about Juan Ayuso's recovery from his Paris-Nice crash, the ambitions of Lidl-Trek, and what it feels like to be at a team with genuine ambitions to be the best in the world. This is the 13th edition of the Volta for the Spaniard, he has not missed it since his WorldTour debut in 2013.
On Ayuso after Paris-Nice: "I've been training with him at home and I've seen him well, recovered both from the physical blow and the mental blow. Crashing while race leader at a Paris-Nice isn't something that happens every day, but I think in the long run it will do him good."
Verona was measured on Tour ambitions — "a podium is feasible, though very complicated; there are many strong riders" — but less guarded on what it's like training alongside Ayuso day to day. "Training with him is almost like a game. It reminds me of Alejandro Valverde in that sense. Juan is methodical, but he also leaves room for improvisation: sometimes we find a Strava segment and challenge each other."
On the team's growth, Verona did not hold back. "Since Lidl came in not just as a sponsor but as the owner of the team, we have had a very solid base. In almost 16 or 17 years of career I had never had so much at my disposal."
"It's even more in my head than the good days I had."
Florian Lipowitz on his Tour de France debut, the weight of sudden fame, and life with Remco Evenepoel
Florian Lipowitz is easy to underestimate. Seven years ago he was a biathlete. Now he is a Tour de France podium finisher, navigating the very specific pressures of being Germany's great cycling hope. He spoke at length to The Athletic while racing at the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya.
On the mental cost of overnight recognition: "For me, it was definitely hard, especially after the Tour. Maybe that's also why, in the races after, I was also struggling health-wise, and I got sick quite often. I think I was often on the limit with all the stress and outside attention. I was just finished. Now I would say I should have enjoyed that time more." He is still figuring it out. "For me, it's always hard to be in the spotlight," he said — a man who had never done post-race media rounds before July. He spent October and November off the bike after a nose operation, skied over Christmas near Seefeld, and came back lighter for it.
The overarching memory from the 2025 Tour de France is not a good day, but stage 18: the Col de la Loze finish, where he attacked over the Col de la Madeleine and was reeled in and passed by the favorites, losing 1:40 to Oscar Onley and nearly surrendering third place. "It's not a positive highlight, but I will never forget it. It's even more in my head than the good days I had." Characteristic of who he is: "I don't like to just sit in the wheels, not being a real part of the race. I think it's also my style to make some action, even if it's sometimes a bit stupid."
On sharing Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe leadership with Remco Evenepoel, Lipowitz was straightforward. "I did a pretty good season last year but I think it's still far off his level: he's world champion, Olympic champion, he won the Vuelta. It's also a good combination: he's a different type of rider, so I think for the next Tour, if we do everything right, we can really profit from each other."
And on Tadej Pogačar: "I don't even want to think about how to beat him. The goal for sure will be to aim for a podium again. If it's me or Remco who gets there, I don't care."
"I couldn't even manage a 20-minute walk."
Christophe Laporte on ten months with cytomegalovirus, and coming back
A year ago, Christophe Laporte was on the couch. Not a recovery couch. The couch. Too ill to walk for twenty minutes. He spoke to IDL Pro Cycling in detail about the cytomegalovirus that cost him most of the 2025 season, ahead of Friday's E3 Saxo Classic.
"It was the toughest period of my career," said the Team Visma | Lease a Bike rider. "When I look back to a year ago now, I had already been ill for more than a month and I felt really bad. I couldn't even manage a 20-minute walk outside without feeling unwell afterwards. I was basically on the couch all day, doing nothing. Because I simply couldn't do much, not even with my children."
The virus — from the same family as glandular fever — started as what felt like a prolonged cold. A blood test confirmed it. "Every morning you wake up expecting to feel better, but at some point you start to think: it's never going to get better."
They kept planning comebacks that never arrived. Eventually the decision was made to stop chasing a return date and focus on health first. He came back in August, still managed to win the Tour of Holland and finish second in Paris-Tours. "But I was already happy that I was even able to race again last year. A few months earlier, I really could not have imagined that."
In 2026, the reset appears complete: victory at the Ruta del Sol, fourth at Omloop Nieuwsblad, and the lead-out for Matthew Brennan's win at Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne. "I've had a good winter and I feel completely fine again, especially when I compare it to last year." The goal for spring: "I'm convinced I have the legs to win a Classic."
🏆 THE SERGE BAGUET AWARD
"Look, ultimately I have made my peace with it. I just try to do the best I can for myself. And yeah, if we don't have a designated leader, I just try to ride for a result. That's how I get through each season, but the days when I ever dreamed of winning a big race like this, those are long gone."
— Mike Teunissen, NOS Wielerpodcast
Wonder what The Serge Baguet Award is all about? Check it out here.
💬 QUICK QUOTES
"The cooperation was amazing." — Remco Evenepoel, Cycling Pro Net, with a sarcastic smirk after the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya finish, clearly frustrated by Jonas Vingegaard's lack of cooperation in the final 30 kilometers.
"He went off the brake hoods and tried to take the handlebar from below. Then he hit a hole in the road and slipped off his bars." — Klaas Lodewyck, Assistant Sports Director at Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe, Sporza, explaining Remco Evenepoel's crash in the final kilometer of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya.
"Obviously, I didn't want to take advantage of a situation like that, I decided to just wait for the bunch." — Jonas Vingegaard, Cycling Pro Net, on deciding not to continue his effort after Evenepoel's crash in the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya.
"Yesterday night, I was a bit frustrated not to have won. I wasn't happy, so I wanted to win again today." — Dorian Godon, Cyclism'Actu TV, after his second stage win in three days at the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya.
"For now I see no limit to what this team is capable of." — Tobias Müller, In De Leiderstrui, said before the start of the Ronde Van Brugge - Tour of Bruges, won by his Unibet Rose Rockets teammate Dylan Groenewegen.
"He's not someone who talks like that — he looks at it race by race, always with a lot of respect for his competitors — and that's also the best way to approach it." — Florian Vermeersch, WielerFlits, shutting down questions about whether Tadej Pogačar is targeting all five Monuments.
"That finishing circuit — it is so scary. It just winds left and right through the towns. And along the road there are metal barriers — maybe a meter of fencing and then a meter of open gap. That's just how they stand. And then suddenly, out of nowhere, there's a road sign planted right in the middle of the road. No padding. Nothing. This race is genuinely life-threatening. I completely understand riders who say the next time they come back to San Remo, it'll be to eat focaccia. If I ever win that race, I am never coming back. Never. It is more insane than any of the Belgian classics. Because there is so much on the roads — parked cars everywhere. Jesus, there are so many parked cars. At one point me and Big Matty [Mathias Norsgaard] were riding out on the left side, and you're just sitting there thinking: if there's one spot that isn't padded out, we're going down. That's just how close you are to everything." — Mads Pedersen, Lang Distance Podcast, on the danger of the Cipressa-to-finish circuit at Milano-Sanremo.
"In the peloton too, I think last year we were still getting pushed aside pretty often, and I genuinely feel like it happens a lot less now." — Wessel Mouris, WielerFlits, on how Unibet Rose Rockets' status in the peloton has changed in one year.
"Today we had two riders in the team — Wessel Mouris and Tobias Müller — who had never done a WorldTour race before. But they were there in the finale. In the crosswinds, doing their job really well. And that is beautiful. And that makes me personally very proud, because they apparently understand our plan very well." — Marcel Kittel, Sprint Coach at Unibet Rose Rockets, In De Waaier, on the team's performance at the Ronde Van Brugge - Tour of Bruges.
"Our formula as a team is Body + Mind + Team = Success. And it is actually quite simple. That is what we try to focus on." — Marcel Kittel, Sprint Coach at Unibet Rose Rockets, In De Waaier, on the team's philosophy.
"I am effectively going to Harelbeke with the team on Friday. But not as a trainee team director. I am just going to follow the race for a day to see if that is still something for me. I am definitely not doing anything in the race this year. But I will follow a few races again. Actually the first time I go back into the race after 8 or 9 years now. So I am very curious whether I still have a feel for it." — Tom Boonen, Wielerclub Wattage, playing down rumors about him taking on a directeur sportif role.
"Yeah, and then people say: the racing behind the top guys isn't that serious anymore. That's actually wrong. Behind them you now have 80 riders riding at the level that previously only 20 riders could match. So the depth is actually much greater. Which makes it even harder to ride a good race behind the big names." — Mike Teunissen, NOS Wielerpodcast, on the lever of the peloton behind the elite.
That's it for today. See you tomorrow 👋
Jay