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Cadel Evans’ frustration is clear as his efforts to make up time on Tour de France big guns Alberto Contador and Lance Armstrong are stifled.
Without a super strong team, the Australian feels damned if he doesn’t attack on his own and unwanted if he does – with others in the breakaways complaining bitterly that his presence as a title threat means they’ll be chased down by the dominant Astana team.
An Evans attack early in the mountainous eighth stage of the Tour de France on Saturday might have raised the yellow jersey hopes of some of his fans but it drew the ire of fellow breakaway riders.
It went down like a lead balloon with one of them, former race leader Fabian Cancellara.
“Astana weren’t having it,” said Cancellara. “Because Cadel was there we had no chance. Racing like that, I’m sure, Evans will never win the Tour.”
But Evans was unrepentant.
“You’d think anyone in the Tour de France would let me go in a breakaway, and then when they get into a break with me – like a couple of members of them did – they carry on like three-year-olds with their tantrums, saying ‘get out of the group, they’re gonna chase us’,” said Evans.
“I just get so sick of being told, ‘why don’t you go on an early breakaway. Why don’t you you do this, why don’t you do that’.
“You’ve got to take these opportunities when they come.”
The second of three days in the Pyrenees proved a bit of a damp squib.
Evans attacked early, was reeled in, and then after a double acceleration by fellow yellow jersey hopeful Andy Schleck, the Astana team of Armstrong and Contador flexed their muscles to take a grip on the stage.
As Spaniard Luis Leon Sanchez went on to beat three of his breakaway companions to victory, the main peloton came in nearly two minutes later with no changes in the overall classification.
Contador was still 6secs behind unlikely champion Rinaldo Nocentini of AG2R, Armstrong was third overall at 8 while Schleck was 1:49 in arrears and Evans was still 3:07.
To his credit, Evans, who had tried in vain to attack his rival on the last kilometres of the summit finish to Arcalis where Astana’s 2007 champion Contador finally won on Friday, at least tried something.
But as a tactical ploy, it was a no-goer. And the Australian admitted it had been a total waste of energy, which might handicap him on Sunday’s mammoth climb over the Tourmalet down towards Tarbes.
“I saw an opportunity there on the climb and I’ve got nothing to lose so I thought I’d try something,” said Evans.
“As it turned out, a big waste of energy. Hopefully I will recover that by tomorrow.”
Five kilometres from the summit of the day’s first climb, the 23km long Port d’Envalira, Evans attacked the yellow jersey peloton prompting a number of riders to counter.
An earlier seven-man group had formed, and from that little bunch Frenchman Sandy Casar had managed to break free to come over the summit alone.
Evans joined him at the 50km mark with Garmin’s David Zabriskie, Vladimir Efimkin of AG2R, Christophe Kern of Cofidis and Egoi Martinez of Euskaltel.
On the long descent Cancellara was one of four other riders who had battled to join their breakaway, but Evans’ presence ultimately forced Astana to up the pace.
Evans was caught 13km further on and Cancellara managed to stay out the front before being caught on the Col d’Agnes.
Astana team manager Johan Bruyneel, who has helped Armstrong win seven Tour crowns and Contador one, said he was baffled.
“I don’t know what Evans’ intention was, but if you look at the profile it is a long climb and when you see after Port d’Envalira that there is still 150kms left to go, I didn’t really understand,” said Bruyneel.
He hinted that Evans’ teammates at Silence should really have been attacking, and not him.
“That is their strategy, but I would not do that with my team and our top guys,” added Bruyneel, who even questioned Saxo Bank after Andy Schleck’s bid to distance Astana on the Col d’Agnes.
“For example, with Saxo Bank, I would have sent Frank Schleck to attack rather than Andy and it’s only Cadel from Silence who is dangerous for us.”
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