Tour de France Stage 8 | The Sir Wiggo & Johan Show

Summary

THEMOVE Podcast Summary Episode: Tour de France Stage 8 | The Sir Wiggo & Johan Show
Release Date: July 12, 2025
Hosts: Sir Bradley Wiggins & Johan Bruyneel

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Introduction

In this episode of THEMOVE, hosts Sir Bradley Wiggins and Johan Bruyneel delve into the intricacies of Stage 8 of the Tour de France, offering expert analysis and insights into the day's events. The discussion covers race strategies, jersey competitions, rider performances, and the pressures of leading in one of cycling's most prestigious events.

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Overview of Stage 8

Stage 8 was characterized as a flat stage stretching 171 km from Saint-Ménier-le-Grand to Laval. Both hosts approached the stage with specific expectations, anticipating strategic moves and potential outcomes based on rider strengths and team dynamics.

Bradley Wiggins [01:04]:
"The green jersey competition now is looking like it's going to be between a sprinter and the main GC guy."

Johan Bruyneel [30:05]:
"He's going to want to try to win a stage for sure, but it will not be at the detriment of his function for the team and in critical moments."

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Green Jersey Competition

A significant focus was placed on the battle for the green jersey. Jonathan Milan emerged as a frontrunner, securing victory in the intermediate sprint and accumulating points that bolster his position in the competition. Bradley predicted a tight race for the green jersey, primarily between Milan and Tadej Pogačar, especially after Sacha Modolo fell out of contention.

Bradley Wiggins [01:38]:
"More importantly, the green jersey competition is shaping up, and Milan won the intermediate sprint again today."

Johan Bruyneel [01:44]:
"If Pogačar is a rival, this is not going to be easy."

Milan's performance was further scrutinized, especially regarding potential penalties for aggressive maneuvers near the sprint's end, which could influence his standing in the green jersey race.

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Crashes and Team Impact

The stage saw several crashes, impacting key riders and altering team strategies:

• Joel Almeida: Despite crashing the previous day with a non-complicated rib fracture, Almeida started Stage 8 but rode at the back, raising concerns about his performance in the mountains with an injury.

  Bradley Wiggins [07:45]:
  "He was fortunate that it was a stage like it was, but part of me just doesn't know..."

• Mark Solaire and Dunbar: Both riders experienced crashes, with Dunbar sustaining a wrist fracture, leading to his withdrawal from the race.

  Johan Bruyneel [10:06]:
  "It's a big loss to Tadej in some way."

These incidents highlighted the unpredictable nature of the Tour and its potential to significantly impact team dynamics and championship outcomes.

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Media Interaction and Athlete Stress

The conversation shifted to the pressures of being a Tour de France favorite, emphasizing the strain of constant media attention and interviews. Bradley shared his experiences from the 2012 Tour, expressing frustration with the overwhelming and sometimes intrusive nature of sports journalism.

Bradley Wiggins [17:50]:
"Sports journalism for me is dead. I feel that some of them... are really only there, blowhards seeking to make currency out of someone."

Johan Bruyneel [20:16]:
"It's hard... especially in the Tour de France, the Tour de France effect."

They discussed how media scrutiny can affect a rider's demeanor and performance, citing current tensions between teams as a byproduct of heightened public and journalistic focus.

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Team Strategy and Sprint Analysis

A detailed analysis of Team Alpecin-Fenix's strategy centered around Jonathan Milan's sprint capabilities. Both hosts praised Milan's versatility and power, likening his sprinting style to that of Sir Bradley himself.

Bradley Wiggins [29:43]:
"He's such a versatile rider. I mean, he's Olympic team pursuit champion..."

The discussion also touched upon the team's decision to prioritize Milan over other sprinters like Mads Pedersen, addressing criticisms and emphasizing the professional nature of team strategies in achieving race objectives.

Johan Bruyneel [31:45]:
"They have Jonathan Milan. They made a much criticized decision to take him instead of Mats Pedersen..."

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Incident Between Pogacha and Jorgensen

An incident in the feed zone involving Tadej Pogačar and Quinn Jorgensen sparked debate about team rivalries and strategic play during the race. Johan speculated whether Visma's strategy might be intentionally antagonizing Pogačar to induce mistakes.

Johan Bruyneel [14:30]:
"Could this be part of Visma's strategy in the long run to really annoy Pogacha, piss him off and push him to make mistakes?"

Bradley, however, remained skeptical, attributing the incident to the chaotic nature of feed zones rather than deliberate tactical maneuvers.

Bradley Wiggins [14:56]:
"I don't think there's much in those... it's not a love affair between, between UAE and Visma."

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Women's Tour de France and Calendar Discussion

The hosts briefly touched upon the scheduling overlap between the men's Tour de France and the women's Giro d'Italia, questioning its impact on athlete participation and race logistics.

Johnson Wiggins [12:07]:
"It's kind of weird. I don't know how that is constructed, the women's calendar..."

They advocated for aligning the women's schedule with the men's Grand Tours to enhance coordination and visibility.

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Conclusion

The episode concluded with reflections on Stage 8's outcomes, anticipation for Stage 9, and final thoughts on team performances and race strategies. Both hosts expressed optimism about upcoming stages and the evolving dynamics of the green jersey competition.

Johan Bruyneel [40:48]:
"Tim Melier... I think Tim will get redemption tomorrow."

Bradley Wiggins [41:16]:
"It's a confidence and it's a different demeanor... it's a confidence and it's a different demeanor."

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Notable Quotes

• Bradley Wiggins [17:50]:
  "Sports journalism for me is dead."

• Johan Bruyneel [14:30]:
  "Could this be part of Visma's strategy...?"

• Bradley Wiggins [01:04]:
  "The green jersey competition now is looking like it's going to be between a sprinter and the main GC guy."

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This episode of THEMOVE offers a comprehensive look into the strategic complexities of the Tour de France, enriched by the seasoned perspectives of Sir Bradley Wiggins and Johan Bruyneel. Their analysis provides listeners with an insider's view of the race's unfolding drama and competitive spirit.

Transcript

[Bradley Wiggins]

We're now getting into the W domain, the welt territory. He always comes good nine days into a Tour, doesn't he?

[Johan Bruyneel]

I think he's going to be in animal mode in the second half of the race. He's going to be, I mean, and we know that this guy just doesn't hold anything back. He's the best. He's going to want to try them on the stage for sure, but it will not be at the detriment of his function for the team and in critical moments.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I'm the 2012 Tour de France winner, Sir Bradley Wiggins.

[Johan Bruyneel]

And I'm Johan Brunel. I directed my teams to nine Tour de France victories. Welcome to the Sir Wiggo and Johan show, our daily show where we dive deep into the tactics behind every stage of the Tour de France. Hi, everybody. Welcome back to the Sir Wiggo and Johan show, Presented by Ketone IQ. Like every day today, flat stage, 171km from Samyen Le grand to Laval. And we're going to start as usual by asking Bradley, what is your take of the day? What's your main takeaway of today's stage?

[Bradley Wiggins]

Well, today's take of the day was. Well, I predicted Milan would win yesterday. I thought it was, you know, a sure thing for him. But more importantly, the green jersey competition is shaping up and Milan won the intermediate sprint again today. And now it looks as though his main competitor in this green jersey competition over the next two weeks will be Tade Pogaccio. As Binigan fell away a little bit more today, wasn't in the top 10 in the final sprint. So that's my main take is the green jersey. Competition now is looking like it's going to be between a sprinter and the main GC guy.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, for sure, for sure. I can see that. I can see that it's not going to be easy for Milan. No, because if I, you know, the official results are not out yet, but I think Today he got 70 points, but he's going to get a penalty of 10 points for something he did. I didn't really see it. He pushed away one rider with 700 meters to go and he's gonna get a penalty. But anyways, this was their goal of little track, right, and sprint stages and green jersey. But with Bogachar as a rival, this is not going to be easy. Before we start to talk about anything else, I want to talk about one of our partners. Join Cycling. Join is the number one training app that puts a professional cycling coach in your back pocket. You don't need a big goal to benefit from training. Join helps you to stay fit, focused and consistent, even when there's no event in sight. Join keeps it interesting with challenges, variety and smart progression. It recalibrates when you miss a workout. It prevents over training before it even starts. It's designed by experts with World Tour level experience. And Join helps cyclists of all levels to maximize their progress while avoiding over training. It's very simple. You download the app, you enter all your data and Join will design a personal training schedule for you based on your availability, your goals and your fitness. I'm personally using it for a personal challenge I have. At the end of September, I've committed to do a very long mountain bike ride in the hills of Madrid. It's going to be five to six hours with more than 2,000 meters of elevation and I'm using it. And it's amazing how it caters basically to your wishes. I mean, I'm 60, almost 61 years old and it adapts really to any level of cycling you want to do. So Join is your number one cycling training app. You can now test join 30 days for free, download Join today and improve your ride. So you go to Join CC the Move and you will get access to the join app 30 days for free. So that's join CC the move. Bradley, today the stage started from Saint. Let me get this pronunciation correct. Saint Mien Le Grand. It's the birthplace. I've looked it up. It's the birthplace of triple Tour de France winner and ex world champion French Louison Bobet. You as a cycling historian, and I know you are, and you have an incredible memory. Do you know which years Louisiana won the Tour de France, Bobby?

[Bradley Wiggins]

53, 54 and 55. And was world champion.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Correct.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Four as well. Yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Wow. Yeah, that's correct. He was, he was, I mean, he was an amazing cyclist. He also won four. Monuments only is the only monument he didn't win. And I think you had another stat on him, right?

[Bradley Wiggins]

Well, he's lost Tour de France. So he, he had a really bad car crash in 1960 and it was a career ending car crash. But he's last. He climbed off the bike in, I think it was 59 on the COL D when copy attacked to win the Tour de France and climbed off his bike and never rode again. He retired on the spot.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Oh, wow.

[Bradley Wiggins]

For a big champion like that. And of course, yeah, the Col D goes over the top and finishes in Val d'.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Air, you know, beast of a climb, beast very long, very long. It's where?

[Bradley Wiggins]

It's. Where. That's the climb that Burnell won the tour in 2019 when he.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Was it the. Is it on or the easel? Yeah, it was the. Is it on? Yeah, yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

You know when it snowed on the descent into.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

And it was supposed to go up.

[Johan Bruyneel]

I still. You know what, I was talking with Spencer about this the other day. Bradley, I don't know what you think. So this was 2019. Right. So 2018, Grant Thomas had won the Tour. Yeah. And Bernal attacked on the Israel. He got away, I think. Was it. Was it with Simon Yates? He got away. They were.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He was chasing Yates. Yeah, yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

And then there was a mudslide and the stage got short. I mean, I'm a. I'm a big Amber Null fan. I mean, I love to see him in that Tour, but I personally think if this stage would have gone on because it was the downhill of the. And then they had a long valley and then they went up to Tigny. Yeah. And seeing what was behind Geraint Thomas, who was not going to work, and there was Cruiswijk and there was Laurent de Plus who was pulling for Cruiswijk and there was some other guys. Alaphilippe even.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I think Alaphilippe was in yellow.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, he was in yellow. Yeah. And so anyway, so they stopped on the top of the Iseran and that was the finish of that stage. But I think that Bernal would have had difficulties to win that Tour if the stage goes. Goes to the finish because, you know, he would have problems with that super long valley and in the cold, it.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Was snowing as well.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And then. And then the day after this stage, which was stage 20, was cut short and was Vincenzo Nibali who won the stage, who was until today, the last Italian.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Six years.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Six years. Six years ago. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Anyway, so today was as we predicted, right. The headwind, flat stage, nothing going on, we had little track and Intermarshe controlling for Milan and, and Girmal. So I thought by myself, you know, it's a really good day for. And I think the majority of the. Of the riders in the peloton will agree, except the last 30k which are always super hectic. It was a really good day to recover and also a good day for a guy like Joel Almeida who crashed yesterday and surprisingly was at the start this morning.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, I mean, so the report came through that he had a non complicated fracture of his rib. I mean, I know what it's like to break a rib yard. Have you broken ribs?

[Johan Bruyneel]

I did the first in my last Tour de France in 98. I did the first 10 days with three broken ribs. Yeah, it's. This is. Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

You know, and not only that, we saw the abrasions and how cut up he was as well. I mean, he was at the back today. We saw him riding at the back, and I think it was. It was. He was fortunate that it was a stage like it was, but part of me just doesn't. You know, you can recover from road rash and things like that and. And knocks, but, you know, is he going to be the y ma that we. We expect of him in the mountains with a broken rip? I mean, I wouldn't put it past him, but, you know, at the same time, you know, it's going to be a big loss to Tade in.

[Johan Bruyneel]

In some way. I think. I think. I think we're not going to see the Almeida we. We want to see. You know, there's a quote from Macin on Almeida. He's, you know, he says he's a fighter. He has a broken rib, but it's not a fracture that will impinge him on his breathing. The doctor has given him the all clear to start. Did you ever continue races with broken ribs or fractured ribs? No.

[Bradley Wiggins]

There was no chance.

[Johan Bruyneel]

You can, you can do it. I mean, my experience personally and all, every single cyclist has had either bruised rips or fractured rips or broken ribs. You know, continuing to ride your bike, it's not gonna make it worse, but it's definitely gonna not make it. Gonna make it better because your, Your, your ribs go, you know, every time you breathe deep, you know, and I think that the problem with broken ribs or even fractured or cracked ribs is initially you kind of feel okay. You can say okay, okay. It's not as bad. But three, four days later, when you've done this huge expansion of your. Your rib cage, right?

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

It starts to inflame and. Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah. We also saw Mark Solaire crash today as well.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, he did. Yeah. It didn't seem to be a bad crash, but, hey, listen, I mean, it's the. It's the proof, Bradley. I mean, the Tour is unique. You know, you can have your leader in top shape. If he loses Soler and Almeida, this is. This changes completely, Right?

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Do we know something about the. The Bahrain guys who crashed? It was. It was with Drago. He was. He was really bad.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah. Where did he start today?

[Johan Bruyneel]

I don't know. Dunbar. Dunbar did.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Dunbar is out. He's out.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah. Or something. Wrist fracture. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But, yeah, I mean, it was a stage, you know, there's really nothing. Nothing much to report. You know, an easy day for the majority of the stage. And it was, you know, you could see clearly. Okay. Nobody wanted to go on the break. We had these two teams controlling Inter Marche and Lidl, with one rider, I think one or two riders probably. And we could see that some riders in the peloton had, you know, they were in the wheels recovering, and I think they all needed a recovery day after these hard stages. We've seen that Tadepogachar was even in the mood to check in with his team car. His girlfriend. His girlfriend or wife. I don't know if they're married. She's racing in the Giro d' Italia for women. And he was checking in with the team car. So we have this little clip here of today. Checking in today. Urska, seventh place at Giro d' Italia stage and in the gt. Wait, wait.

[Bradley Wiggins]

We still don't have info.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Maybe ninth, but we will. We will check. When will be official.

[Bradley Wiggins]

We will tell you.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Okay. And how was Austria del Toro win?

[Bradley Wiggins]

Third. Micah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Interesting. So, yeah, I mean, he had time to. To check. To check on that, by the way, in. First of all, I don't understand. Do you understand this, that in the middle of the Tour de France, they have the Giro Italia for women who put this calendar together?

[Bradley Wiggins]

It's kind of weird.

[Johan Bruyneel]

No?

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, I think. I don't. I don't know how that is constructed, the women's calendar, but obviously they do have the women's Tour de France when we finish here. And. Yeah, Yeah. I don't know. I don't know on that one. It does seem strange, but at the same time, it is a different calendar to ours. And. But I think. I think I did see something the other week that they were. There was considering. There was a consideration that they may run the women's Giro to coincide with the men's race or just after, you know, which would make sense, wouldn't it?

[Johan Bruyneel]

I think so. I think so. They should do the. I think they should do the same with all three Grand Tours.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

It just makes much more sense. No? Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Because the women's welter has already been, isn't it?

[Johan Bruyneel]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. The women's welter has been. That was like before, like in the old days when the Jew. When the Vuelta was the first Grand Tour. Yeah, yeah. But other than that, you know, there's not much to Report. There was. There was another, another thing. Before we go into the details of today's stage and the final of today's stage, I've seen this comment from today vs Visma Lise bike and Mateo Jurgensen. Apparently there was an incident yesterday and I think it's just an example of what's going on and how stressful it is. So the last lap yesterday, just after the first time with the Britannia, there was a feed zone and there was an incident between Pogacha and Jurgensen. They had their Swanivers. Pogaccia was on the right side. He was going to his fournier and then Jorgensen came next to him and basically took his bottle for his four year was in front. But I think they both missed their bottle and there was some pushing going on. So Pogachar said today about this, for me it was normal, but I don't know what their intention was. They do this a lot of times, coming in front of you in the feed zone like they are the only ones having the bottles there. Sometimes you have to be patient and stay on the wheel when you're taking bottles and pay respect to everybody. You know, it's not a love affair between, between UAE and Visma.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Where was those comments made? Was that just at the finish, was it?

[Johan Bruyneel]

No, it was this morning before the start.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Okay, this morning before the start.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, I saw the incident, but I think, Bradley, I don't know what you think about this. Okay. An incident like this, it happens. It's obviously not deliberate, not from one guy or the other. It does happen. Right. But this tension between them, could this be part of Visma's strategy in the long run to really annoy Pogachar, piss him off and push him to make mistakes?

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, I'm not too sure. I'm not too sure on that. I'm not too sure. I think incidents like that just happen on the road and, and there's no intention from anyone. I can guarantee that someone like Matteo Jorgensen wouldn't intentionally do that.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

And you know, it's. We've seen how stressful and how fast the race has been and, and half the time when there's a lull in the racing and you're trying to get your drink or your foodie bottle. We know what feed zones are like. I mean, they're, you know, it's mayhem. Yeah. So I don't think there's much in those, to be honest. But. But today's comments, when asked about it, you know, he didn't dismiss it, did He. And he's clearly. He's clearly a different animal to the one we've seen in any interview in the previous years.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

You know, yesterday he looked quite concerned in his interview. He didn't seem as jovial as he normally does. And there is a. There is a. A different side to Taday this tour, and an extremely confident side, as we've seen. But that's also reflecting in his body language and the way he's conducted himself. I mean, just like, you know, riding there and asking about his. His girlfriend or his wife. Sorry, excuse me. Whatever. Whatever they are, the situation now. But also I saw him sitting on Tim Welland's lap behind the podium today having a bit of a fun, you know, and there's a, There's a, There is a more sort of. I wouldn't. Would certainly not arrogance, because if anyone's confidence.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Confidence, it's.

[Bradley Wiggins]

It's a confidence and it's a, you know, it's a different demeanor. And I like this demeanor of t. Yeah, I think he's. He's warranted it. But there is a. There is more of a. Of a sort of public rivalry this year with those two teams than there ever has been, which is. It can only be good for us watching it.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah. And one of the things I also noticed is that. And this is typical for the Tour de France, right, sometimes Bogachia looks a bit more irritated than normal in interviews. And this is the Tour de France effect. Everything is blown up out of proportion, magnified, exaggerated. And I just wanted to ask you, Bradley, you have been firsthand in this situation in 2012, when you took the, the day you took the yellow jersey, I mean, you were the favorite already before the stage. But when you take the yellow jersey, then everything changes, Right. You have to do these press conferences. You have to always ask. I mean, and I think people underestimate how draining this is because, you know, there's nothing else you want to do than go back to your hotel to recover. And you see the same faces, always the same question, sometimes even stupid questions many times. So I, I would love to ask you to explain a little bit. What, what. How you, how you manage that.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Well, I, you know, sports journalism for me is dead. I think that, you know, anyone can be a journalist these days. You know, you can run a page, a blog, whatever, and, you know, feel free to have a comment or an opinion on something, which is fair enough. What, what. What I've found difficult to always deal with was that I felt that some of them, or a lot of them, you know, because there's two and a half thousand journalists, photographers and cameramen on the Tour de France. That's a lot of people, you know, do we need that many for a start now, you know, half those journalists that are there, or so called journalists are really only there, you know, they're blowhards seeking to make currency out of someone and seeking to make currency out of comments from someone where they get them and they have the privilege of getting them 10 meters after the finish line after a six hour stage. And as we all know, I was the best at it. You're not going to be the best version of yourself in terms of what comes out of your mouth. So, you know, and, and there's people that seek to, to make currency out of those comments when you're on the Tour and you have to deal with that every day. And once you become aware that those questions are coming and they're coming daily and you. I led the race for 14 days, you know, you can, it can, it can become irritating, particularly the, the, the type of questions you get asked, you know, which are, and in my case, when I was leading the Tour, the mo. The, the topic of hot conversation was me and Froome in the situation, which is understandable. But once you've covered that situation once and that topic once, you know, there's a, there's obviously a, a rampant need from certain journalists to want to make more of it than it is if they were. If indeed there was. And again, the thing that cycling journalists seem to get away with is the misquotation of you, you know, so you can say something that is verbatim and you can see the transcript of it, but they will, as we know, twist, sensationalize and misquote you. And that can become a problem through the Tour, particularly if there's something you haven't said. And that, that's why I asked you about Tadi Picacho, where those, where those comments came from. And I, you know, when I listen to a ride, I'd give an interview and I hear what they say verbatim. I'm much more inclined to trust what comes out of their mouth than what I read because I don't trust many journalists, if any, if we can still call them journalists, even these comments that I'm saying now, Johan, I'm sure there'll be a story from Wiggin. Slams journalists at Tour de France. Calls them all a bunch of cunts. Sorry.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Not something like. Yeah, yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Anyway, so there we are. That's my take on It.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah. No, it's. It's. It's. It's hard, you know, I mean, that's also one of the things that you have to master if you're the favorite, especially in the Tour de France. The Tour de France is different to anything else. You know, if you're leading the Vuelta or the Giro or you win a big classic, it has nothing to do with the attention that, you know, is thrown over you. Of course, you know, the palato has won the Tour de France three times now, so he's. He's used to it, but he's becoming a more and more bigger star.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He's a global star, isn't he?

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

In world sport.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah. Yeah, for sure. For sure. And. And, yeah. So, you know, I think that little irritation sometimes, you know, the irritation after the stage or when they, when they come with this with a question sometimes. And you're right, Bradley, I think this little incident now that we saw in the feed zone, they just want to blow it up. I've seen. I've seen articles everywhere.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

In Denmark, especially in Denmark. It's, you know, it's. It's. It's blown up, you know.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah. And I mean, we saw that last week with the, you know, the potential feud or. Or, you know, the wanting of a feud or some sort of question as to whether. Wow. And. And while it was giving everything he could to Jonas, and there was a great shot yesterday of Jonas riding back down the finish straight in the opposite direction after the Muta Britann, and they both touched hands as well. It was coming through the finish line, which dispels all the crap that was.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Written last week, of course. Yeah, yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

But good to see wow up there today. Second as well.

[Johan Bruyneel]

I have to say, that was amazing. That was. I mean, that was impressive. You know, it was. It's. It's. It's one of the stages that a world von art in like 100 shape would have a really good. I mean, okay, it's. It's Jonathan Milan. You don't beat that guy easily. Right. But. But still, good to see him up there. And this is another. Another reason why, for example, you know, whatever they say, even if you see it come out their mouth, you just said, you know what? I want to see that. I want to see the interview. Don't trust that either, because Walt said specifically that he was not gonna go for the sprint today because he's still not feeling good, and he went for it, you know, so he must have been feeling quite good during, during the stage. Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I mean we haven't seen him in a bunch sprint since I think the V24. Yeah, it's been quite some time but yeah, at the same time we're now getting into the well domain, the welt territory. He always comes good nine days into a tour, doesn't he?

[Johan Bruyneel]

I think he's going to be in animal mode in the, in the second half of the, of the race. He's going to be, I mean, and we know that this guy just doesn't hold anything back. He's the best. I mean he's going to want to try to win a stage for sure, but it will not be at the detriment of his function for the team and in critical moments. Before we talk about Jonathan Milan and the sprint and the final rally, let's talk about Ketone iq. Yep.

[Bradley Wiggins]

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[Johan Bruyneel]

Okay, today's stage. So initially Bradley not, not much going on boring stage, you know, an ideal stage to watch and fall asleep on the couch and there was nothing really happening except the intermediate sprint. Jonathan Milan won that with no contest. You know, it seems like everybody else has except Pogacha. If Pogacha wins the green jersey it's going to be because it just comes to him. But Merlier didn't, I mean they were there but they didn't give it their all. You know, Girmay was fourth or fifth I think in that sprint. So that's, it's clear that Milan is now, I mean that's his main goal. That's it. That's the biggest goal. Of the team, I think. And he's the clear favorite of all the sprinters to win the green jersey. But a part of that there was nothing except when we saw those two writers of total energies go away. Yeah, I, I call it a TV attack.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Team, isn't it?

[Johan Bruyneel]

It's the region of the team.

[Bradley Wiggins]

It's, I mean, I used to live in Nantes when I went to La Francis de Jour and.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Okay.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I used to train every day with Jean who lived there.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Okay, all right. So you lived in Nantes?

[Bradley Wiggins]

I lived in Nantes when I first went there because this is the region of Mark Madu. You know, Mark was from.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

So I, I, I moved there and yeah, so we good, good memories actually.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Okay, okay. So we saw, we saw on the, on the race radio also is, I don't know who it was that, the director, he says, okay, let's attack, let's honor the race. You know, that's, that's typical. That's a French honore. La course Honore de Tour de France. Do you think that comes from the team? Is it a sponsor call or as some may suggest, I mean, it's maybe a bit far fetched, but could it be a request of ASO to say, hey, this is a boring stage?

[Bradley Wiggins]

I don't think you would come from asa. No, I, I tell you what, I, I find that hard to believe, but if there is any plausibility in that call coming from aso, then I think that we got a serious problem on our hands. You know, ASO shouldn't have that much influence on the racing, on the racing side of things.

[Johan Bruyneel]

It, it, it isn't in the, in the past. It has happened, it has happened.

[Bradley Wiggins]

But I imagine it, Yeah, I can imagine saying, guys, you know, we need to be up the road. This is our, this is our region. Yeah, I think it's, it's, you know, Jean Rene has always found sponsors for that team, haven't they? You know, that team has been in existence since Bonjour. Before that it was Von D, which was the biggest amateur team in France. And then of course they've had different amalgamations, you know.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Was it the first one? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

And so, you know.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah. There's a long history there. Yeah, yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

And you know, with Direct Energy now co sponsoring ineos.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Somehow, you know, there could be a fear that, you know, that team could, you know, be extinct in a couple of years and.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

So, yeah, I mean, it's good for.

[Johan Bruyneel]

The team, you know, it's what, there's, it's what they're there for, for, you know, in the Tour. It's, you know, last year they won a stage. Was it who won the stage? The gravel stage, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. He's, he's sprinting up there with.

[Bradley Wiggins]

For the point. He's a class act. Yeah, he's a good rider. Yeah, he's been second. Milano won that stage last year.

[Johan Bruyneel]

He's a good. True, true, true. Yeah, so but anyways, then, you know, nothing happens. Those two riders go away. We have the usual stressful preparation towards the bunch sprint. And then we see one of the big favorites, Tim merlier punctures with 11k to go. I think it was crazy how crazy how fast he was back in the peloton, but still, you know, I think that kind of effort is what he missed at the end. On top of that only having one lead out guy, I expected Merlier to be, to be up there with Milan today, but that was not to be speaking about Milan. So what, what is printer man? I mean, as we said, you know, 1 meter 96 centimeters, almost 2 meters, 88 kilos. This is for today's cycling. This, it's almost impossible to race at this.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, but he's such a versatile rider. I mean he's Olympic team pursuit champion, you know, sub. He's the world record holder for the 4000 meter individual pursuit. 3 minutes 59 seconds. The 4000 meters standing start. Standing, Standing style. Yeah. And he's the current world champion for that discipline. Last year he won it in October. Last, last year, his first Tour de France. He's won the points jersey at both previous judo detailers, won four stages this year. He's a class act, you know, and he's comes from that, that track school and that track program of Marco Villa, who looks after them all and of course brought Ghana through. Marco, world Madison champion back in the day with Silvio Martinello. And so it's. He's a class act and a very unorthodox sprinter. You can see how much kind of energy he's using just, just to keep the bike in a straight line. But it works for him. It works.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah. Yeah. But imagine, imagine the power of Bradley to see, you know, it was, it was straight, you know, there was no. Even if, even if potentially he has committed an infraction. 700 meters to go. The sprint was straight. There was no discussion. Slightly uphill. A guy like Milan, the power he must generate to have a guy like Walt Van Aert on the wheel.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

And Walt could not move an Inch. You know, he didn't even come at his real derailleur. He just had to stay where he was. Right. That's the amount of power this guy has. Imagine if he would be aerodynamic.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He reminds me of the way Gripel used to sprint. Big, big unit, big pig power.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

You know, he's taken a lot of wind, which is, you know, such a different style to the Mark Cavendishes of this world and the Caleb Ewans, you know, so he has to work a lot harder just in the wheels, in the run up to sprint. I mean, we saw his face with 1.5km to go and he was hurting and I thought, you know, is this guy even gonna be able to sprint? Because it's, you know, it's not just the sprint, as we know that you have to launch, you know, your, yeah, your peak power, 2,000 watts, whatever it is, in the last 200 meters. You know, the numbers he'd be doing in the last five kilometers, you know, surging and constantly surging just to stay. I mean, he's, it's, it's incredible. To get to the sprint is quite something to launch your sprint, you know.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah, no, I was, I was, I was happy to see him win. You know, it's, it's, you know, the big goal of, of, of the team also, you know, a little track. They, let's not forget, you know, they, they made a, a very difficult decision to, to go for Milan, having Mads Peterson on the team, who has already won stages in the Tour de France. And so they made that decision and I just wanted to, I listened to the move Bradley and I heard George's five minute rant on the fact that Little Track put Quinn Simmons the whole stage on the front. And he said he was highly insulted by this. I have a point.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He had a point.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Well, yes, he has a point. I mean, he can feel like that, but I completely disagree with his point of view. I completely disagree because, you know, Quinn Simmons got added and I like Quinn Simmons. You know, he's a really good writer and he deserves to, you know, to have sometimes his chances. But I think in this circumstances here, I'm looking at it from a different point of view. Not as, of course, I'm not American, but, you know, it's also. We can't consider right now, as of now, the way Little Track has evolved over the years. Littletrack is not even. They may be registered as an American team. I don't know if that's still the case. I think it's still owned by track, but it's going to be co owned pretty soon. Lidl is a big player, right? So this is an international team and they went to the Tour de France with a clear goal. They have Jonathan Milan. They made a much criticized decision to take him instead of Mats Pedersen and that's their goal. And they have Schielmoser for potentially a top five, top 10. That's a secondary goal in my opinion. And Quinn Simmons got added last minute to the Tour de France team because he's in good shape. Because he did, you know, because he didn't get added. Let's make this clear. And this is, I think this is what George needs to understand. He did not get added to the team because he wears the stars and stripes. That's completely secondary. He got added because he's in good shape and he did great in the Tour of Switzerland and proved that he had his chance on the team, his place on the team. But if they go for Milan, and I would think that there's been agreements made before the race. Gwen Simmons, when he got the call, I can tell you, I can promise you when he got the call, okay, Quinn, you're in the eighth place, you're coming to the Tour. This would have been after the Tour of Switzerland. They have their whole strategy planned out already. And I'm sure that part of that call was these are the conditions. We need you to be always on duty. We want to win stages with Jonathan. That's the main thing. And if you look at the way the team is composed, they have two leaders. Main leader Milan, secondary leader Skelmosa. Then they have their lead out train, which is, I think it's Consoni, Steven, Tom Skuhins and Edward Turns. So if you see that composition, that's a team which is completely concentrated on a sprinter, right? And so to me it makes no sense that, that criticism, I think, you know, okay, I can understand his position from an American point of view, but this is a professional, a big budget, professional team. Stars and stripes are completely irrelevant. So I personally think that these decisions have been made on beforehand. You could say, okay, Quinn Simmons and Thibaut Nys, those are the two guys. I think Thibaut Nys rode a little bit today, but let's not forget that Thibault Nice was also already on beforehand. One of the potential stage winners, he had a crash in stage two or three. He's still recovering from that. And so it's only Quinn Simmons left. And Quinn Simmons will have been told today on beforehand, this is what you have to do. And as a team manager, team director or team owner, I completely understand what they're saying. You don't like it as an American, okay, fine. But this is business, these decisions, this will have been one of the conditions when Quinn Simmons got the call. So I personally think that George exaggerated with his highly insulted. Okay, fine, he may have a personal preference for Quinn Simmons because they have a personal relationship. But if you look at it from a team team's point of view, I think that George needs to, how would I say it, needs to get his stars and stripes pink sunglasses off and talk some sense. Because this is, this is, you know, this is professional cycling. So anyway, that's. Well, you don't seem to agree with it, but.

[Bradley Wiggins]

No, no, I mean, I think there's, there's, there's plausibility in both arguments there. I mean, obviously you're the ds, you come in from a different angle and different thought process. But I can understand what G's saying and I think there's got to be scope for, for plans and goals to change on the road. I mean, Quinn didn't won the stage yesterday, you know, he was in that break or two days ago. And, and he's capable, as he showed at the Tourist Swiss of winning. And, and you know, it's all very well having all your eggs in one basket for Milan. I mean, this is his first stage stage win, it might be his last. There's not many more opportunities for the sprinters in this Tour de France. And Quinn has got a, a fantastic opportunity to win a stage as he's shown, and he can win in different ways. And I think what George was saying was there are other guys that could do the job that Quinn did today.

[Johan Bruyneel]

I don't think so, I don't today because today if you look, I mean, of course you cannot, you cannot predict how the last 2km are going to plan out. And it's easy to say, okay, he was on his own. You know, sprint trains sometimes get derailed. But you know, if you have one of these favorites and you have these four riders, these lead out riders, it has worked in the past. He had, they have the best lead out train if it works. I mean before, before Philipson left and you had Alpecin. But you know, if you look at Consoni Turns, Squishins and Stuyven, these four guys are the lead out guys.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

So unfortunately, you know, it's, it's Quinn Simmons who had to do it. I mean, I'll ask George. I Mean, I'll ask George if you. I don't remember which year it was. Was it 99 or 2000 postal service. That was an American team, a real American team. And I left the American champion home because I thought that he would not be a good teammate.

[Bradley Wiggins]

It was that. Who was the American? Jamie?

[Johan Bruyneel]

Marty. Jameson.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Marty.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah. And so, you know, those are decisions you have to make sometimes, you know, so it's not because he's in Stars and Stripes, and. And I also don't think actually that what Quinn Simmons did today is going to impact his possibilities later on in others in stages that are well suited for him to go for a stage win. I don't think it will impact him because, you know, it's. It's. It's another flat stage. Tomorrow he will be again on duty. I suspect that tomorrow it's going to be Quinn Simmons and Thibaut Nice together. Probably Thibaut Nice will have to do the majority of the job and Quinn Simmons will have to be a little bit, you know, because it's going to be, again, probably a bunch print. But, but yeah, so I, I disagree with George's. I mean, especially saying. Feeling highly insulted. That's. No, no, you need to understand, I mean, okay, if, if you think it's. It's America. America, it's an international team and they went there with clear goals, you know, so. Okay, you have to. Anything to add to that?

[Bradley Wiggins]

No, no, no, no. I think it's. I think it's a fair point.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Before we talk about tomorrow's stage, Bradley Ventum trivia. Like, every day, we have our partners at Ventum, the contest for the whole Tour de France. Every day there's a question. Yesterday, yesterday's answer was, it was about the Muir de Britannia, right? The answer was, it's called the Obdus of Brittany. Today's stage eight question is the following. Which rider holds the record for the most green jersey competition overall wins in the history of the Tour? So which rider has won the most green jersey final classifications in the history of the Tour de France? Send your best guess or if you know the answer to ventomracing.com themove and you can enter. You will enter in the grand price $5,000 of store credit towards any Ventum bike you want to purchase. If you don't want to wait until the end of the Tour and you want to check out the Ventum website, there's a current 10% off the whole site using the code the move 10 at checkout. And if you want to go for the road model, the NS1, you get 20% off with the code NS120. What to say about Stage 9 to. From Chinon to Chateau tomorrow? 174 km. Bunch print again, I guess.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, I think so. And I think it'd be the same. The same players from today's stage. I think Little Track will ride again. Binyam has to try something again, you know, so Monty have to do that. But I think for tomorrow. My tip for tomorrow is Tim Melier. You know, he wasn't present in the sprint today. We saw that puncture he had in the latter stages. But I think Tim. Tim will get redemption tomorrow. And I think Tim will be. Excuse me. Play a big part in tomorrow's stage.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, yeah, I think so too. Yeah. Today was not to be, but if. If you look at the way it planned out, I think it was not an ideal sprint for Tim either. You know, it was really for strong. I mean, you could see, you know, you had Milan and Van Aert and everybody else was dying. You know, it was. It's the first time in this Tour de France that I see, and in many states, many races that you see a sprint and it's all lined up. It wasn't bunched up. It was, you know, it was a line. And then you had, you know, the rest of the peloton coming in, so. Okay, well, we'll be back tomorrow for stage nine. Thank you, Bradley, as everyone. See you tomorrow.