Tour de Romandie 2023: "That was stupid" - Dane Bjerg grumbles about the route after Ayuso's victory

Ayuso, who is only 20 years old, had already made his mark on stage 2 with his second place in the sprint behind Ethan Hayter (Ineos Grenadiers) caused quite a stir. The Spaniard is riding his first race since last year's Vuelta Espana after a lengthy bout of tendonitis. "I'm feeling better, but my legs are getting weaker every day. I'm suffering a lot here and have the feeling that my form isn't there yet. But if I continue to improve in the race, I'll be happy," said the winner on a course that, after a climb that should not be underestimated, also had a treacherous descent in store.

This is exactly where Ayuso had gained the decisive seconds, as he was still behind Yates and Jorgenson at the split time measured on the climb. "I rode down at full throttle because I knew I had a good split time and was close to the front. So I knew I could take some risks to try and win."

Bjerg criticises routing

However, this part of the route, which Jorgenson said he travelled down at up to 100 km/h, was also criticised. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates), who led for a long time and finished seventh in the end, found clear words: "The descent was not necessary, we could have stopped at the top. To be honest, it was pretty stupid. I no longer took the full risk. I have a wonderful wife at home and I want to see her again."

I have a wonderful wife at home and I want to see her again - Mikkel Bjerg

Through Marco Brenner (Team DSM), there was also good news from a German perspective on stage 3 of the Tour de Romandie. The 20-year-old held the fastest time for a long time and was only pushed back to twelfth place by the favourites after a strong ride.

Two corona cases at Cofidis

Two of his team-mates, Niklas Märkl and Alberto Dainese, had skipped the race in Chatel-Saint-Denis to prepare for their participation in the Giro d'Italia. The Cofidis-However, Ion Izagirre and Anthony Perez had to retire due to a coronavirus infection. Sergio Higuita (Bora-Hansgrohe).

>> The teams' line-ups for the Giro d'Italia

The queen stage of the tour awaits on the next leg. The overall standings, led by Ayuso and Jorgenson (+0:18), are likely to be shaken up once again, as there are still some time trial specialists in the top 10 who are not made for the high mountains.

Results 3rd stage Tour of Romandie

1. Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) 25:15
2. Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar) +0:05
3. Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) +0:17
4. Nelson Oliveira (Movistar) +0:18
5. Will Barta (Movistar) +0:19
6. Damiano Caruso (Bahrain-Victorious) +0:20
7. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates) +0:24
8. Tobias Foss (Jumbo-Visma) +0:24
9. Gino Mäder (Bahrain-Victorious) +0:25
10. Max Poole (Team DSM) +0:27

Overall standings after the 3rd stage

1. Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) 8:33:40
2. Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar) +0:18
3. Tobias Foss (Jumbo-Visma) +0:19
4. Nelson Oliveira (Movistar) +0:22
5. Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) +0:30
6. Damiano Caruso (Bahrain-Victorious) +0:32
7. Finn Fisher-Black (UAE Team Emirates) +0:34
8. Jonathan Castroviejo (Ineos Grenadiers) +0:36
9. Max Poole (Team DSM) +0:37
10. Ethan Hayter (Ineos Grenadiers) +0:38