‘Quinn could have attacked first if there was help’ – Tour de France stage winner Tim Wellens responds after Simmons called out motorbike slipstreaming in breakaway

The second rest day of the Tour de France couldn’t have come at a better time, with tempers flaring for those who lost out in the stage 15 breakaway to the dominant UAE Team Emirates-XRG’s Tim Wellens.

Wellens won solo into Carcassonne after biding his time and launching a long-range attack, extending his lead into the walled city, but despite his clear strength, one of his fellow escapees, Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek), accused in-race motobikes of playing a key role in the move sticking.