Dan Martin (Quick-Step Floors) wheeled across the Tour de France stage 15 finish line in Le Puy-en-Velay and rode straight into a playful provocation. At the end of a demanding 189 kilometres in the Massif Central, run off at over 41kph, the Irishman managed to jump clear of the yellow jersey group and snaffle back 14 seconds on his general classification rivals, rising a place to fifth overall in the process.
It was, by any metric, a fine afternoon's work in this tightest of Tours, even if some seemed less convinced by the fruits of his 25th place on a stage won by early escapee Bauke Mollema. "All that effort for 14 seconds," a television reporter mused. "Was it worth it?"
Martin didn't blink.
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"Well, I was six seconds off 7th last year and I finished 9th, so every second counts at the Tour," he pointed out. "14 seconds, I mean... Everyone was on the limit today. And the rest day's tomorrow, so I can recover."
That handful of seconds lifts Martin ahead of Mikel Landa (Sky), just 1:12 off the yellow jersey of Chris Froome (Sky) and 49 seconds off a place on the podium. Were it not for the time he conceded when he crashed on the descent of the Mont du Chat seven days ago, Martin would be in the maillot jaune by now, though he has never been one to pay too much heed to hypothetical scenarios.
"It's all 'What if?' I might have been in yellow and then lost five minutes because everyone attacks the hell out of me. The situation is the situation, and we're always going to wonder 'What if?' but this is the hand we've been dealt," Martin said. "Maybe all these seconds I've been picking up, they would never have let me go."
Racing hard
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