Mark Cavendish feeling confident after sixth in first Tour de France

Mark Cavendish said he was “happy” with his performance in the first sprint stage of the Tour de France, where he finished sixth.

The Astana Qazaqstan rider was well positioned by his team in the final kilometres of stage three, but could not match the speed of Jasper Philipsen who took his first win of this year’s race.

Speaking to the media after the stage, Cavendish said he was pleased with his personal performance and that of his team, even though he did not get the win.

“Yeah I’m happy with that,” he said. “Of course, we’d like to win, but I’m happy with how the boys rode, I’m happy with the speed. You see the team are up there with more experienced teams, the teams that do it every day.

“We had a plan to get me at the front there, with 2km to go, into that u-turn, that’s what the boys executed perfectly, that’s what they did. So actually it was job done there, it was just down to me trying to find the right wheels after that.”

Cavendish explained that before stage three, Astana had already decided that the final part of the stage was not ideal for him and was more suited to his rivals, especially riders like Jumbo-Visma’s Wout van Aert or other more punchy sprinters.

“I was OK. I’m happy with the speed, 500m to go, I wasn’t even in the top-10, maybe 15th position. I’m happy with that… We said at the beginning that that’s not the best kind of finish for me, it was more for someone like Jonathan Milan or Wout van Aert,” Cavendish added.

“I had to wait until it went up to get on top of the gear… I’m happy with that. I can take confidence for the next few days.”

Coming into the Tour, Astana hired Cavendish’s former teammate Mark Renshaw as a sprint consultant for the race. The Manxman said that Renshaw’s detailed work helped them a lot to prepare for the stage finale.

“[Mark Renshaw’s homework] helped a lot. Not just in the final bit, but in the last 20 kilometres, the climbs, little kicks, knowing just how long they were, how to stay up there. Where to move up before the roundabouts, it helped a lot,” Cavendish said.

“Yeah, I think he [Renshaw] nailed it, and the boys nailed it for me. Luis Leon [Sanchez] and Cees [Bol] were always with me. I was quite happy to sit with Alpecin, but I always had the guys moving me up, giving me space, so I had to spend as little energy as possible. Super, super happy with that.”

Stage four between Dax and Nogaro ends on a motor racing circuit, a finish that Cavendish said he was looking forward to.

“We’ll try tomorrow. It’s a different one, I’ve never finished on a motor racing circuit at the Tour. It’s happened in other races, but it might be a bit different at the Tour. It’s new for everyone. I’m quite looking forward to it, it’ll be another flat day. I think the peloton will look forward to a flatter day tomorrow. Hopefully the wind is alright too.

“I’m confident in my form, I’m confident in the team, we look forward to the next sprint opportunities.”

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