Tour de France 2019: Luke Rowe and Tony Martin explain ‘fight’ after being disqualified from race

Luke Rowe and Tony Martin have given their version of the events after the “fight” which led to both riders being disqualified from the Tour de France.

The two experienced campaigners were seen having a heated altercation while riding during stage 17, as the German former world champion Martin nearly ran Team Ineos’s Rowe off the road and Rowe responded with an apparent punch in the direction of his rival.

They were summoned by the race commissaires immediately following the finish, and were disqualified and fined £800.

Speaking in a joint-interview hours later, both riders put the incident down to the heat of the moment.

“I can hold my hand up and say I made a mistake,” said Rowe. “It’s something I’ve got a live with. It’s hot out there. We were fighting for position. We both made a mistake.

“This happened with 14km to go. We then rode the climb, we spoke about the incident and we put it to bed. We both accepted responsibility. We shook hands and said ‘OK, forget about it’. And the last words [Tony] said to me before we crossed the line was ‘Tomorrow we go again’.”

Martin said: “There was a big fight for the last climb to get our riders into it. We rode for five hours at 35 degrees. We were on the limit. And then we had a fight – you can see it on the video.

“I’m really sorry for what happened. I felt quite bad directly afterwards, but it was the heat of the moment and it sometimes happens in sports. I really want to say sorry to Luke and also Team Ineos, and to all the cycling world.”

Rowe and Martin apologised to each other and their team-mates, but both agreed the decision by the UCI to evict them from the Tour was harsh.

“I feel quite hard done by. They’re the referees, they make the decisions and we have to live with that. That being said, I do feel it was a bit over the top.

“I spent the best part of an hour in that UCI van with the video tapes. I was trying to fight my battle and I was also trying to fight Tony’s. What we did wasn’t right, but that does happen in cycling numerous times a day. I think it was a bit over the top to send us both home.”

Martin added: “It’s still a big shock, and I feel bad and sad. Leaving the team at this important part of the race, when we were fighting for the podium in Paris, leaving the team in this way is really bad. A hard decision from the jury but we have to accept it.

“I [wish] for both us is a second chance. But so far there isn’t one. I’m sorry that we can’t show we are sorry for this situation. Leaving it this way is maybe the wrong sign.”

Asked if he held out any hope of a successful appeal against the disqualification, Rowe said it was unlikely.

“Ourselves, along with Tony’s team are putting in an appeal but that’s for them to deal with. That’s above my pay grade, I just ride a bike. We’ll see what they can do, fingers crossed. I don’t think there’s a big chance, I think they’ve made their decision, but we can only hope.”