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By Ivan Speck
Mr muscle: Mark Cavendish (centre) celebrates as he wins the 18th stage of the 2010 Tour Who needs teammates to lead you home when you possess the blistering speed of Mark Cavendish?
Deprived of his usual lead-out man Mark Renshaw by the Australian’s expulsion for an inexplicable head-butt last week, Cavendish won the bunch sprint into Bordeaux with dismissive ease.
The Briton was so far ahead as he crossed the line on the Boulevard des Freres Moga that he was able to glance around at his rivals with an impudent grin.
His habit is to sit on Renshaw’s wheel before darting out with his final burst of acceleration. That tactic denied him, the HTC-Columbia rider took a tow from whomever it suited him in the final 500metres.
When he decided the moment was nigh, the result was as inevitable as every one of his now 14 Tour stage wins. He stands just 16 points behind Alessandro Petacchi in the chase for the green points jersey. For a second successive year, though, it appears that it will remain agonisingly out of his reach.
Easy: Cavendish had time to look round at his nearest competitors before crossing the line in triumphCavendish said: ‘I’ve got to try to win on the Champs-Elysees, whatever happens. It was hard to know what the gap behind me was but I was pretty pleased at how easily I jumped on to Alessandro’s wheel. I was sheltered from the wind as well so that played in my favour.’
Should Petacchi follow Cavendish home on the Champs-Elysees, it will be regarded as a frustrating Tour by the Briton.
A first green jersey would be his had he made the most of his chances. A puncture on the chaotic cobbles stage from Belgium into northern France cost him his position in the peloton.
Scenic: The pack passes through the town of Tartas during the 18th stageHe caught up admirably, but then didn’t contest the sprint within his own group at the finish line in Arenberg, costing him three points.
Another seven or eight went the following day in Reims when, fatigued by the previous day’s exertions, he lost his first Tour de France sprint since 2007.
Factor in his refusal to take part in an intermediate sprint early in Stage 10 when Petacchi and Tor Hushovd both picked up points and he would now be at worst five points behind the Italian.
Race you: A horse and rider gallop alongside the packIn other words, a repeat of his victory last year on the Champs-Elysees would have guaranteed him the green jersey.
The decision to send Renshaw home angered Cavendish, although common sense told him to bite his tongue rather than openly criticise the Tour organisers.
He added: ‘I’ve missed Mark, especially in the Pyrenees to see someone suffering more than me. Obviously it was going to be more difficult for me without Mark there and that win today was for him.’Cavendish was greeted on the podium by Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz. The shame is that, barring a crash for Petacchi, he will not be mounting the podium to wear green in Paris on Sunday afternoon
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