He'd crashed and was trying to get back to the front group. It was blatant and caught on camera hence the disqualification. But if he'd been getting the magic spanner treatment whilst they gradually towed him back up, no one would've complained.
There's also the fact that he was not driving the car, so the ds who decided that was the right course of action should bear most of the responsibility.
People don't complain about a sticky bottle when it's to help an unlucky cyclist catch back up to a group, it's different if they're already in a group and using it to bridge a gap.
He'd crashed and was trying to get back to the front group. It was blatant and caught on camera hence the disqualification. But if he'd been getting the magic spanner treatment whilst they gradually towed him back up, no one would've complained.
There's also the fact that he was not driving the car, so the ds who decided that was the right course of action should bear most of the responsibility.