He had to fight hard until the very end, but this Sunday in Cardiff, Romain Grégoire did secure his final victory in the 2025 Tour of Britain. In a fast-paced sixth stage, and after following the attacks from Remco Evenepoel in the final, the Frenchman firmly held onto his green jersey. In the Welsh capital, he therefore secured his fourth victory of the season, and the third overall stage race victory of his career.
Just 112 kilometres separated Romain Grégoire from the overall win in the Tour of Britain this Sunday morning. However, with the leader’s green jersey on his shoulders, the young man was obviously expecting a hard day between Newport and Cardiff, on a profile that didn’t feature major climbs, but that still included a demanding terrain and a one-kilometre hill at 10% ten kilometres from the finish. “The weather conditions weren’t easy either as it rained a lot during the day,” said Jérôme Gannat. “It was also a tactical stage in a way. First, we had to let go the right breakaway, which went after about twenty kilometres. There were four riders, the closest overall was 1’13 back, which wasn’t too much of a worry. The goal was to keep them at about two minutes because we knew it would come back fast in the final, so Reef and Matt pulled at first. After fifty kilometres, things got a bit tense in the peloton because we approached a strategic zone, with small roads typical of Wales. The gap was reduced to just one minute.” Temporarily stopped by a herd of cows, the bunch eventually cruised with this gap until the final twenty kilometres.
“I just enjoy the moment,” Romain Grégoire
Then, following a big push approaching the day’s final climb, the breakaway’s lead dropped to thirty seconds. On “Caerphilly Mountain” (1.3 km at 9.6%), the last fight between the favorites did take place, and Romain Grégoire entered the scene. “It was a nervous stage,” said Romain. “To be honest, I didn’t sleep well last night. There were a lot of riders close to me in the general classification, so we had to manage it well. That’s what we did perfectly as a team. I was a bit nervous because I knew I could win, but I could also finish tenth tonight. It wasn’t easy on the climb, but I was quite confident, I had good legs, and I was able to follow the attacks.” After he responded brilliantly to Remco Evenepoel and Oscar Onley, the young Frenchman crossed the summit in a small group of about ten riders. “The leaders found themselves together at the top,” added Jérôme. “Ideally, Quentin should have been with Romain in the final, but he had a mechanical problem on the climb. Romain had to manage it on his own, but he especially had to keep an eye on Alaphilippe and Evenepoel.” The Belgian wasn’t actually keen to give up. “The descent wasn’t easy either,” said Romain. “Remco attacked, it wasn’t a fun moment, but I managed to catch him.”
Thanks to a solid effort, Romain Grégoire managed to bring it all back together with five kilometres to go. Then, a few moments later, the leaders’ group got bigger. “With 10 or 15 riders, it would have been really dangerous for me at the finish, but when sprinters like Kooij and Watson came back, it was easier to manage,” said Romain. “When I saw Visma-Lease a Bike leading out in the last two kilometres, I was more confident.” “There were also the three riders left from the breakaway in front, and that suited us as well,” added Jérôme. Eventually, the fugitives were caught in the final straight and the time bonuses at the finish were grabbed by the fast men. Olav Kooij claimed victory, and Romain Grégoire sealed his overall win in the British event. “It’s crazy,” he commented. “I’m really happy with this victory, for me and for the team. It’s incredible to win a GC in a race like this. It’s quite rare in a career. And then winning in front of Remco and Julian makes the victory even sweeter. I just enjoy the moment. It was the first race of a big block, so starting with a victory like this will obviously give me a lot of confidence.”
“We can be proud,” Jérôme Gannat
Also winning the best young rider classification, Romain Grégoire scored the thirteenth victory in 2025 for Groupama-FDJ, but the first overall win since the 2023 Tour du Limousin. “He had this race in mind because he knew the stages suited him, especially the one he won,” concluded Jérôme. “Yesterday, he did what he had to do by finishing in the climbers’ group without losing time. Romain is really strong when he’s determined. Overall, we defended the jersey for two days, and I think we did it well. We had an experienced team with Quentin and Olivier, but we also had the youngest rider in the race with Reef, and a sprinter in Matt. We handled our responsibilities and our strategy well, so I think we can be proud of that. Finally, it was special because the staff from La Conti that was here didn’t know the WorldTour riders very well, but it went well. There was a very good atmosphere and that obviously also affects the results.”
