Groupama-FDJ and Romain Grégoire had high expectations for the fifth stage of the Tour of the Basque Country on Friday. Unfortunately, the Frenchman was unable to compete for the stage victory, as Ben Healy, a member of the early breakaway, managed to win solo two minutes ahead of the bunch. Within this group, the young puncher took fifth, while Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet and Brieuc Rolland also finished in this group on the eve of the queen stage around Eibar.
One last opportunity was on the table this Friday for the punchers on the roads of the Basque Country. Several climbs marked the 172-kilometre course between Urduña and Gernika-Lumo, with a final difficulty located some twenty kilometers from the finish, and the Groupama-FDJ squad had real ambitions. “It’s a day we had in mind for the stage victory, but we also knew that it wasn’t going to be easy,” explained Benoît Vaugrenard. “We knew that a breakaway could be dangerous, and that it would be made up of strong guys if the start was fast. With the tailwind, that’s what happened.” After about fifteen kilometres, six men, and not just anybody, took the lead: Pello Bilbao, Julian Alaphilippe, Warren Barguil, Alex Baudin, Ben Healy and Bruno Armirail. In the first hour of racing, the group built itself a lead of two and a half minutes. “Given who was in the breakaway, we asked Clément [Davy] to pull in the pack to maintain the gap,” added Benoît. “He did a great job, so well done to him.”
“There was a stronger rider today,” Benoît Vaugrenard
With the help of other teams, the gap reduced to two minutes with 60 kilometres to go, but then Ben Healy broke away from the breakaway and the chase became less intense within the bunch. “Unfortunately for us, there was a stronger rider today,” said Benoît. “Healy put on a great ride by going with 50 kilometres to go, and with the headwind. In the back, we did what we had to do, but everyone in the peloton was exhausted and there was no one to close the two-minute gap.” On the final climb, the Irishman lost almost nothing to the best in the peloton, who still engaged in a small battle. Romain Grégoire and Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet followed without problem, while Brieuc Rolland came back in the final three kilometres. In a thirty-man sprint, Romain Grégoire then took fifth place on the stage. “The only regret is that other teams didn’t come to chase earlier, but we can’t do anything about it,” concluded Benoît. “The team worked very well again, and that’s the positive thing of today. Now, it’s time for the queen stage tomorrow. We’ll be supporting Guillaume 100%, and the goal is to get into the top 10. Everyone is very tired; we know that endurance is Guillaume’s strength, so I think he’ll be fine.”
Overall, the Frenchman is in thirteenth place on Friday evening while Brieuc Rolland, now twenty-first, has retained his blue jersey as best young rider.
