Tour de France 2023: Mark Cavendish on crash-laden finish to Stage 4 in Nogaro - 'That was carnage'

Mark Cavendish (Astana Qazaqstan) labelled the finish to Stage 4 of the 2023 Tour de France as «carnage» after three crashes on the motor-racing circuit in Nogaro. The irony was that the day had been almost totally becalmed until that point, but the intensity ratcheted up a notch in the final few kilometres and it triggered rider upon rider hitting the deck as the pack made their way round the tarmac track. Ad Cavendish's fifth-placed finish — one better than the day before — means he will have to wait for a record 35th stage win, but the circumstances made it a tough ask for the Brit to triumph, as Jasper Philipsen took victory, making it back-to-back stage wins for the Belgian, of Alpecin-Deceuninck.

Tour de FrancePhilipsen doubles up in crash-marred finish to Stage 42 HOURS AGO Explaining his view of the chaos, Cavendish told Eurosport GCN: “That was carnage. «Every team would’ve had a plan for that final and I bet you there wasn’t any that went right apart from Jumbo-Visma getting the guys through those narrow roads early. »It was a real mix of riders in the final and I was constantly analysing who was there, who had other teammates.

“When I saw Mads [Pedersen] (Trek–Segafredo) had [Jasper] Stuyven with him, he usually goes early, there was a headwind finish, long straight, wide road, I thought I’d use that. But they just didn’t go. «At 350 metres I thought maybe just go now but I was waiting for them to go and they didn’t.