UCI Fines Teams $12,000 in Just One Day of Misdemeanor at Tour de France Tune-Up Race

Stage 3 of the Critérium du Dauphiné smiled down on the UCI bank balance Tuesday.

The governing body raked in 9,500 CHF ($11,900 USD) from sanctions in just one day at the race now known as the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.

Why? Tardiness at the start of the stage 3 team time trial.

The report issued by UCI jurors after Matteo Jorgenson and Visma-Lease a Bike blasted to victory Tuesday was brief but – for them – bountiful.

Sport directors Mathew Hayman and Benoit Genauzeau (Jayco-AlUla and TotalEnergies) were both whacked with 3,500 CHF sanctions.

The problem? Their riders’ bikes were not presented “at least 15 minutes before the team’s start time.”

Lotto Intermarché DS Mario Aerts was also fined 3,000 CHF after his team’s bikes were not presented 10 minutes in advance of rollout.

Both the total and individual values of Tuesday’s punishments stand out in what was one of the most heavily sanctioned days of the season so far.

Fines north of 3,000 CHF are rarely seen in road racing.

Tadej Pogačar briefly fell foul of one of the UCI’s weightiest sanctions this spring when he was fined 5,000 CHF for wearing incorrect apparel on the podium at Liège-Bastogne-Liège – until officials realized the relevant regulation had been relaxed.

UCI applies rules to the letter in Tour de France dress rehearsal

Unlike in the kerfuffle with Pogačar earlier in the year, there was no room for error from race officials Tuesday in the Rhônes-Alpes.

The stage 3 team time trial was being treated as a crucial dry run for stage 1 of the Tour de France. Everything had to be on point for riders, teams, and commissaires.

Section 2.5.009 of the weighty UCI rulebook was applied to the letter.

According to the governing body’s regulations:

“The riders of each team shall present themselves with their equipment at the bike check area no later than 15 minutes before their team scheduled start time. This check is mandatory and must be passed before the rider is allowed to start.”

The UCI’s TTT clampdown comes after a string of recent regulatory controversies and eyebrow-raisers.

Lorena Weibes was booted out of the Giro d’Italia for riding a bike 20 grams under the weight limit. Meanwhile, Jan Willem van Schip can’t stop catching the UCI’s ire with his wacky aero hacks.

The governing body also revealed in recent days that it plans to restrict the size of bike computers used in racing, tweak rules on jersey pockets, and mandate that sprinter stages finish with a straightaway of at least 200m.