With just one week to go in the Tour de France, Patrick Lefevere is in a position to win his first ever Tour de France as a manager (or rider). Coming into the race, the consensus was that Enric Mas was his teams best chance at a podium. Thus far, Mas has been waiting in the shadows for his opportunity which has yet to come. Thats because his teammate, Julian Alaphilippe who by all accounts has been the best rider in the world over the last 365 days, has been on a roll with 4 wins in the Tour, one even coming on a mountain stage, and sits in 1st overall. Not typically known as a high mountains rider, Alaphilippe has been in the form of his life and has limited his losses when needed. At this stage in the race it certainly looks doable for Alaphilippe to win, but Dennis, Froome and Porte are all within range of him, and will likely be able to claw back time in the time trial, even if they fail to do so in the remaining mountain stages, so his lead is not safe.
Mas on the other hand has looked like the strongest climber in the race, but it appears as though his team manager is trying his best to bring the French its first Yellow Jersey winner since Bernard Hinault in 1985. To just abandon Alaphilippe's chances going into the final week would cause just short of a riot in France, but at the end of the day Lefevere has riders in 1st and 2nd, and will need to decide his best plan of action.
To add more fuel to the fire, Mas and Alaphilippe are both without contracts next season and perhaps favouring a certain rider is a hint at who is returning for next season and who is moving on to a new team. Its too early to know for sure if thats why, but neglecting one or the other could hurt their chances of re-signing when negotiations start in August, so there are various levels to Lefevere's decision.
Of course its always easy to analyze/criticize when you aren't the one that has to make the decisions, but with both riders in a great position, to lose the Tour de France at this stage, no matter which rider he chooses to go with, would be a huge disappointment.
Tamijo wrote:
Julian is amazing on those hilly stages already a great TDF no matter what happens from here.
Thanks. I suppose you're right, but always nice to be the best team from start to finish and win the TDF with an underdog, which we are in a position to do atm.
VoetsT wrote:
Alaphilippe really is on fire!! Would be great to see a rider of this team winning the Tour. Good luck in the final week.
Btw. I really love this story. I didn't comment for a long time, but followed it nevertheless.
Thanks, I really appreciate getting comments like these!
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The long anticipated final week should hopefully be up tonight/tomorrow morning in europe, as I should have time to play the final few stages finally tonight
Teuns takes the stage, GC riders cancel each other out
1
Dylan Teuns
Team Bahrain Merida
+00:00
2
David Gaudu
Groupama - FDJ
+00:00
3
Serge Pauwels
CCC Team
+00:00
4
Mikel Landa
Movistar Team
+00:00
5
Adam Yates
Mitchelton - Scott
+00:00
6
Rafal Majka
Team Sunweb
+00:00
7
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+01:53
8
Chris Froome
Team Ineos
+01:53
9
Romain Bardet
AG2R La Mondiale
+01:53
10
Tiesj Benoot
Team Ineos
+01:53
Stage 16
Gaviria wins, closing the gap for Green
Only 23 riders finish in the front group, the others lose 1:05. In the front include, Froome, Porte, Bernal, Lopez, Mas and Dennis.
1
Fernando Gaviria
UAE - Team Emirates
+00:00
2
Peter Sagan
BORA - hansgrohe
+00:00
3
Álvaro José Hodeg
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
4
Yves Lampaert
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
5
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
6
Philippe Gilbert
Trek - Segafredo
+00:00
7
Chris Froome
Team Ineos
+00:00
8
Richie Porte
Trek - Segafredo
+00:00
9
Egan Bernal
Team Ineos
+00:00
10
Miguel Angel Lopez
Astana Pro Team
+00:00
Stage 17
Alaphilippe is dropped just as they reach the summit
Mas helps Alaph limit his loses, but the judges are very generous as he gets the s.t.
1
Mikel Landa
Movistar Team
+00:00
2
Warren Barguil
Team Arkéa - Samsic
+00:00
3
Damiano Caruso
Team Bahrain Merida
+00:00
4
Patrick Konrad
Astana Pro Team
+01:31
5
Daniel Martinez
EF Education First Pro Cycling Team
+03:58
6
David Gaudu
Groupama - FDJ
+06:32
7
Greg Van Avermaet
CCC Team
+07:08
8
Léo Vincent
Groupama - FDJ
+07:08
9
Simon Yates
Mitchelton - Scott
+07:44
10
Chris Froome
Team Ineos
+07:44
11
Richie Porte
Trek - Segafredo
+07:44
12
Enric Mas
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+07:44
13
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+07:44
14
Romain Bardet
AG2R La Mondiale
+08:22
15
Egan Bernal
Team Ineos
+09:16
Stage 18
Porte wins, closing his gap to Alaphilippe, heading into the TT
Deceuninck controlled the peloton for much of the day, with only 30 riders in the front group after the first climb of the day. Alaphilippe dropped at the top of the Port de Bales but got back on the descent and the final climb became a slow crawl to the finish, with Porte up by nearly 2 minutes until he cracked with 2km to go, allowing Alaphilippe to slowly pull him back in, with the others behind all cracking as well.
1
Richie Porte
Trek - Segafredo
+00:00
2
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:08
3
Chris Froome
Team Ineos
+01:10
4
Enric Mas
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+01:10
5
Miguel Angel Lopez
Astana Pro Team
+01:10
6
Warren Barguil
Team Arkéa - Samsic
+02:00
7
Rohan Dennis
Team Bahrain Merida
+03:24
8
Romain Bardet
AG2R La Mondiale
+05:09
9
Damiano Caruso
Team Bahrain Merida
+05:20
10
Pello Bilbao
Astana Pro Team
+05:20
11
Pierre Latour
AG2R La Mondiale
+05:20
12
Mikel Landa
Movistar Team
+05:20
13
Steven Kruijswijk
Team Jumbo - Visma
+05:20
14
Bjorg Lambrecht
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+05:20
15
Alexis Vuillermoz
AG2R La Mondiale
+05:20
Stage 19
Quicksteps 2nd 1-2-3 of the race....
After Quickstep put on the pressure to try and force echelons, most of the sprinters were drained or dropped for the sprint, helping Alaphilippes chances for the Green jersey win as well
1
Álvaro José Hodeg
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
2
Jasper Stuyven
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
3
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
4
Dylan Groenewegen
Team Jumbo - Visma
+00:00
5
Enric Mas
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
6
André Greipel
Trek - Segafredo
+00:00
7
Peter Sagan
BORA - hansgrohe
+00:00
8
Fernando Gaviria
UAE - Team Emirates
+00:00
9
Phil Bauhaus
Team Bahrain Merida
+00:00
10
Richie Porte
Trek - Segafredo
+00:00
Stage 20 ITT
Oliveira sets the early best time, which would last until the last 15 riders come in
Alaphilippes biggest day of his life
Ala is only 1 minute down on Porte at the 3rd and final time check before the finish, meaning he will likely hold onto his yellow, but 30 seconds could still change in the final kilometers.
In the end Alaphilippe gets 13 seconds on Porte, and limits his losses to Dennis and Froome, which means he will win the Tour de France, the first Frenchman in 35 years.
1
Rohan Dennis
Team Bahrain Merida
+00:00
2
Chris Froome
Team Ineos
+02:04
3
Enric Mas
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+02:26
4
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+02:31
5
Richie Porte
Trek - Segafredo
+02:44
6
Nelson Oliveira
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+02:54
7
Philippe Gilbert
Trek - Segafredo
+04:39
8
Pello Bilbao
Astana Pro Team
+05:01
9
Steven Kruijswijk
Team Jumbo - Visma
+05:20
10
Damiano Caruso
Team Bahrain Merida
+05:22
11
Daniel Martinez
EF Education First Pro Cycling Team
+05:44
12
Michael Matthews
Trek - Segafredo
+05:52
13
Wout Poels
Team Ineos
+06:00
14
Pierre Latour
AG2R La Mondiale
+06:06
15
Maximilian Schachmann
Team Sunweb
+06:10
Stage 21
The jersey winners from Left to Right, Alaphilippe (Yellow and Green), Barguil (Polka Dots), Gaviria (2nd in Green), Mas (White)
Alaphilippe takes the front as they hit the Champs Elysees
Greipel wins in front of Sagan! His 3rd win on the Champs Elysees
1
André Greipel
Trek - Segafredo
+00:00
2
Peter Sagan
BORA - hansgrohe
+00:00
3
Edvald Boasson Hagen
Team Dimension Data
+00:00
4
Fernando Gaviria
UAE - Team Emirates
+00:00
5
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
6
Nacer Bouhanni
Cofidis, Solutions Crédits
+00:00
7
Marcel Kittel
Astana Pro Team
+00:00
8
Matteo Moschetti
EF Education First Pro Cycling Team
+00:00
9
Álvaro José Hodeg
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
10
Greg Van Avermaet
CCC Team
+00:00
Final Classifications
GC
1
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
2
Richie Porte
Trek - Segafredo
+01:48
3
Enric Mas
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+02:30
4
Chris Froome
Team Ineos
+03:24
5
Rohan Dennis
Team Bahrain Merida
+04:13
6
Egan Bernal
Team Ineos
+18:55
7
Simon Yates
Mitchelton - Scott
+21:55
8
Romain Bardet
AG2R La Mondiale
+22:08
9
Miguel Angel Lopez
Astana Pro Team
+26:33
10
Damiano Caruso
Team Bahrain Merida
+26:45
11
Pello Bilbao
Astana Pro Team
+29:01
12
Wout Poels
Team Ineos
+32:13
13
Mikel Landa
Movistar Team
+32:56
14
Steven Kruijswijk
Team Jumbo - Visma
+33:38
15
Adam Yates
Mitchelton - Scott
+37:45
16
Rigoberto Uran
EF Education First Pro Cycling Team
+37:46
17
Warren Barguil
Team Arkéa - Samsic
+39:12
18
Greg Van Avermaet
CCC Team
+46:06
19
Rafal Majka
Team Sunweb
+46:21
20
Michael Valgren
Team Dimension Data
+47:21
Points
1
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
367
2
Peter Sagan
BORA - hansgrohe
322
3
Fernando Gaviria
UAE - Team Emirates
313
4
Dylan Groenewegen
Team Jumbo - Visma
249
5
Álvaro José Hodeg
Deceuninck - Quick Step
194
6
Enric Mas
Deceuninck - Quick Step
184
7
André Greipel
Trek - Segafredo
157
8
Richie Porte
Trek - Segafredo
151
9
Chris Froome
Team Ineos
149
10
Romain Bardet
AG2R La Mondiale
132
KOM
1
Warren Barguil
Team Arkéa - Samsic
121
2
Damiano Caruso
Team Bahrain Merida
78
3
Adam Yates
Mitchelton - Scott
78
4
Michael Valgren
Team Dimension Data
59
5
Mikel Landa
Movistar Team
42
6
Jelle Vanendert
Lotto - Soudal
42
7
Greg Van Avermaet
CCC Team
34
8
Julian Alaphilippe
Deceuninck - Quick Step
29
9
Delio Fernández
Delko Marseille Provence KTM
29
10
Patrick Konrad
Astana Pro Team
28
Youth
1
Enric Mas
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+00:00
2
Egan Bernal
Team Ineos
+16:25
3
Bjorg Lambrecht
Deceuninck - Quick Step
+45:34
4
David Gaudu
Groupama - FDJ
+46:39
5
Tao Geoghegan Hart
Team Ineos
+56:45
6
Valentin Madouas
Groupama - FDJ
+01:00:56
7
Daniel Martinez
EF Education First Pro Cycling Team
+01:07:44
8
Léo Vincent
Groupama - FDJ
+01:18:16
9
Marc Hirschi
Team Sunweb
+01:49:16
10
Mads Pedersen
Team Sunweb
+01:49:28
Final Thoughts
Well, Alaphilippe showed he could kick it with the best climbers in the world, not sure where he got that ability from, but he was crafty, gaining lots of time on flat stages as well. Without those gains, he likely wouldn't have won. The fact he also won the Green just puts the icing on the cake, as we didnt expect to win either jersey heading into the race.
The number of stage wins was also crazy. Alaphilippe with 4 himself, and Mas and Hodeg with one each, but also several other stages in the top 3, so we were consistently the strongest. Alaphilippe will be commanding a big payday in a few days time, after his Ardennes Triple and Tour de France win in the same season. He can also put a cap on this historic season as he targets the world championships, in France, which it now looks like he has a chance to win despite its Mountainous terrain.
@ Batista - Thank you, Mas really did well to support Alaph and probably would have won if I hadn't used him to save Alaphs race on multiple occasions.
@ Freitas - He really is. I think if he can win the World and Lombardia he will have done a season no one can ever repeat, starting with Down under, then Strade, the Triple and now this.
@ Timm - Yeah, everyone but the Top 5 were really crap tbh. Not sure why Bardet f.e. is always so bad in GTs. I knew Froome and Dennis were the only ones I needed time on heading into the TT, and Dennis has 74 MO and somehow hung in there on most stages, yet multiple 80+ guys couldnt...
@ Tamijo - Thanks, getting the Yellow and Green with the same rider has been a lifelong goal of mine, and I never thought I'd do it with a real life rider in PCM. The fact Alaph isn't even a top climber or sprinter makes it even more surprising. After the 2nd week, I had a real belief Alaphilippe could do it, as he even gained time on one mountain stage.
Le Tour de France (2.UWT) 2020 Stages 8-14
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I am speechless man! That was incredible stuff in the mountains. Congratulations on this amazing win. Mas taking the third as well. Great stuff!
Really good three weeks overall and Mas in third also shows the dominance of the team. 
Well done!
