Although the Groupama-FDJ cycling team didn’t cross the finish line of the Tour de Vendée in first place, it didn’t leave the race empty-handed this Saturday. Thanks to the results of Matt Walls (6th) and Cyril Barthe (7th) in Dompierre-sur-Yon, the French team secured first place in the overall team classification of the 2025 FDJ French Cup. Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet finished third in the individual ranking.
Returning to the calendar one year after its cancellation, the Tour de Vendée concluded the 2025 FDJ French Cup this Saturday. A bit more than 200 kilometres were on the menu, on a challenging terrain that was still suited for the sprinters. As a result, a quite usual scenario unfolded, with a five-man breakaway quickly formed, and just as quickly controlled by the peloton. The quintet’s lead still reached a maximum of five minutes, before decreasing in the second half of the race. “It was a rather special day because we had to secure our first place in the French Cup team classification,” explained Thierry Bricaud. “We obviously had the ambition to win, but we knew it could come down to a sprint, and we weren’t the favorites. So we rode a bit differently than usual, and we had to sprint with two, or even three, riders, and secure positions at the finish line to confirm our ranking. The risk, by relying on only one man, was not to be in the results at all, which has often happened to us.” Starting the final hour of racing, the gap with the breakaway dropped below three minutes, then a few attacks occurred but never really worried the pack.
“Winning wasn’t possible,” Thierry Bricaud
Entering the final ten kilometres, Groupama-FDJ took command with Rémi Cavagna, who broke away for a moment before pulling again. “We wanted to have a good approach to the sprint, but the finish was a bit tricky,” Thierry added. “We can give a shout-out to Rémi Daumas, who did a good job chasing the breakaway in the final.” While yet another counterattack went in the final moments, the peloton still regrouped at the flamme rouge. “Cyril was ideally positioned in the final kilometre, but he made a bit too much effort before the finish and ran out of energy at the end,” explained Thierry. “We had decided to give several riders the freedom to sprint, including Cyril and Matt. They did quite well.” The British rider ultimately finished sixth, just ahead of the Frenchman. “We were beaten by stronger riders; there’s not much to say,” assured Thierry. “I’m not sure we would have done much better if we had raced differently. In any case, winning wasn’t possible, so there are no regrets. On the contrary, the good news is that we won the FDJ French Cup team classification.”