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Brian Holm: Mark Cavendish had a chance to beat Merckx’s TdF record and he wasted it

The Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl director had some harsh words for his own sprinter

Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl  directeur sportif Brian Holm  believes that Mark Cavendish has no one to blame but himself when he didn’t beat the legendary Eddy Merckx’s record number of Tour de France stage wins in 2021. Holm, a former pro himself from Denmark, told FloBikes that he thinks Cav blew his chances at last year’s Tour of breaking the total number of wins.

Mark Cavendish put out incredible numbers in his perfect sprint at Milano-Torino

Although Cavendish has been riding well this year, it’s still unclear if he will be riding the TdF. If he does, all he would need would be to win one stage to break the tie between him and the Belgian. Currently, they both have 34 wins apiece. At the 2021 edition, the Manx Missile took an impressive four stage victories.

Cavendish had a rough off-season, having been attacked and robbed at his home in November. Cav and his wife Peta and children were threatened at knifepoint during the robbery. This came after a horrific crash during one of the events at the Ghent Six Day, where he suffered two broken ribs and a collapsed lung.

When Holm was asked if the team should get behind Cavendish’s attempt to break the all-time record, the Dane was not exactly cagey. “You can’t say that if Cav goes he will win a stage. Nothing is for granted,” Holm said.. “He would have made his own life a bit easier if he had won on the Champs Élysées. He got quite a good chance last year on the Champs Élysées and he blew it. But that’s life.”