Vuelta Etapa 8 – Sébastien Hinault «I didn’t have enough kick»

Nacer Bouhanni did not miss his chance to chart up a second victory during the 8^th stage of the Tour of Spain.  After a heart stopping finale marked by multiple echelons, the FDJ.fr rider won with a strong sprint ahead of Michael Matthews and Peter Sagan.  The leader’s red jersey remained with Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) on the eve of the second summit finish of the race, which will likely up-turn the overall standings.

IAM Cycling did not succeed in grabbing any great results on the stage, though Sébastien Hinault did succeed in finishing in 12^th place on his own impetus.  Matteo Pelucchi and Vicente Reynes were caught out in an echelon near the finish and were never able to rejoin the lead pack despite the help of Marcel Aregger.

As the best finisher on the stage for the Swiss Pro Continental team, Sébastien Hinault, a 40 year old veteran of the pro peloton, said this stage was difficult because of the frequent cross-winds.

“I was in a good position when the first echelon formed, and I managed to keep my position.  Then within 10 kilometers of the finish, a second break happened and we managed to come back with Degenkolb.  But I did not have the necessary kick needed really to play for the win.  I am content with having been a main player, but it would have been better to have been able to finish in the final three.”

Mario Chiesa, directeur sportif along with Marcello Albasini, had a clear opinion of the stage in his analysis.

“We really lost a great opportunity to put ourselves on the forefront of the stage this day.  I am not happy because the guys were forewarned.  Matteo Pelucchi wanted to wait to move up, but with the wind he had to be right on the front.  He and Vicente Reynes were our real weapons for today and with the help of Sébastien Hinault we could really have done better.  This is all the more regrettable since we discussed this very situation this morning in the team meeting.”  Marcel Aregger, the 24 year old teammate, was also sorry for the missed opportunity.  “In the last 30 kilometers, we really rolled with Vincente à bloc, but we were always pegged at 30 seconds behind.  With Omega – Pharma-Quickstep and Saxo-Tinkoff riding full-gas at the front, we had no chance to catch up.”