-
Citation needed.
Indeed:
It was reported in Spanish publication AS that Bouhanni's penalty had been for punching his directeur sportif and then the team car. Bouhanni denied it on twitter, saying that they were trying to make him out to be 'the bad boy that I am not'. Cofidis later published a statement categorically denying the incident, saying that Bouhanni's penalty was for an illegal feed.
"The Cofidis Team formally denies the information reported in the press concerning Nacer Bouhanni. There was never a fight between our leader and Jean Luc Jonrond, his sports director during the 5th stage of La Vuelta 2018," the team wrote.
"Nacer was penalized for an irregular feed at the end of the stage yesterday, ridden under a very strong heat and at a fast pace.The Cofidis team also denies all the information about the conflicts between Nacer Bouhanni and his sports management, they are totally false. Nacer has our confidence and we rely on him."
https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/bouhanni-and-vuelta-race-leader-molard-both-handed-time-penalties/
You are reading a single comment by @Fox and its replies.
Click here to read the full conversation.
Fox
Citation needed. Cofidis were itching to sack him once Vasseur took over, that would've been the perfect excuse to do so.
I think Bouhanni was appallingly treated by Cofidis, despite accounting for at least 50% of their wins for three seasons, Vasseur came in and repeatedly humiliated him. He's a complex character, but has shown that in a supportive environment he'll get you wins, especially in French races. He's perfect for Arkea-Samsic, as he'll win races all year and might, just might, sneak a Tour stage win.
Barguil was on his way out of Sunweb anyway, and he's not alone in finding the environment within that team to be too controlling at times. We don't know the true story with Look, but it's clear Barguil was riding a non-Look frame which exacerbated the issue, but the team management must've been complicit. Again, he's a perfect rider for Arkea-Samsic as he'll get the odd win and be on tv a lot in the Tour. It'll be interesting to see how he and Quintana dovetail as that doesn't look like a good fit.