A curious moment during Stage 18 of the Tour de France has unofficially earned Lenny Martinez the title of sticky bottle world champion, according to the jury at Canadian Cycing Magazine. The Frenchman, wearing the polka-dot jersey, appeared to struggle on the lower slopes of the Col du Glandon—but certainly found way to stay in contention.
Martinez, who was in the day’s early breakaway, slipped off the pace before receiving what observers described as a very generous tow from his team car. His directeur sportif handed over food and a pair of water bottles—neither of which Martinez actually took—but held on long enough to regain contact with the front group.
Bold move by Lenny
The “sticky bottle” is a time-honoured cycling euphemism: when a rider grabs a bottle from the team car and both parties linger just a little too long, stretching the handoff into a helpful tug up the mountain. It’s borderline legal, and often overlooked—unless someone gets carried away. Usually, the commissaires won’t care if you hold on for 1-2 seconds–but more than that–or as many times as Martinez did, might result in a fine or relegation. However, the Bahrain Victorious rider may avoid DQ due to the fact that he’s French, and he is wearing polka dots.
How long can you actually hold onto a sticky bottle in a pro race?
Thibaut Pinot, now retired but ever-watchful, wasn’t impressed. The French fan favourite posted footage of the incident to social media with a vomiting emoji.
Martinez outsprinted Thymen Arensman for the summit points on the Glandon. So he increased his lead in the King of the Mountains classification, as well. Sticky or not, the polka dots stayed put. If he faces any discipline, he cannot have those points removed. Lots of other things can happen, however.
But we will see what happens after the race.
Check out his award-winning performance below.
Là c’est trois ” bidon-collé “… #TDF2025 pic.twitter.com/ItHHYvNfkr
— 🅰ntoine VAYER 📸🖋️ (@festinaboy) July 24, 2025
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Canadian Cycling Magazine…