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Watch Ineos-Grenadiers rider Daniel Martinez fly by cars at 90 km/h

The WorldTour rider was descending like a demon on his training ride

Daniel Martinez passes cars in Colombia
January 12, 2023
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If you’ve watched WorldTour races you know when it comes to going down a hill, a bike is often faster than cars, or even motorcycles. They can shred through corners and hairpins faster than anything on four wheels. Of course, that’s also on a closed course with no immediate danger around. Well, mostly. Every now a car manages to get on the course, or sometimes, a rider gets hit by their own team car.

On Thursday, Ineos-Grenadiers rider Daniel Martinez posted a video riding down a hill in his native Colombia. He had a motorcycle driver follow him for support. The Motoman managed to snap a clip of him at top speed. At one point, he was hitting 90 km/h. That sort of velocity is expected for a descent, but some people were concerned about the chances he was taking on an open road, passing cars.

Watch how much faster a WorldTour rider is than a regular cyclist

Although the video is no longer up, the Internet is forever. This wouldn’t be the first time a video with Martinez was controversial. In 2022, Martinez and at the time, EF Education-NIPPO’s Sergio Andres Higuita García sprinted up a climb in a famous fondo in Colombia. It was startling to see the speed differences between average your average José and a WorldTour rider, but that wasn’t the controversy.

Watch how much faster a WorldTour rider is than a regular cyclist

Although it was November, Higuita was still contractually obligated to ride EF Education-Nippo’s Cannondale bikes in racing, training and riding public events, and needed permission from his team to ride the Specialized S-Works SL. He would be riding Specalized bikes in 2022, but technically, he should still be on his EF ride. Once the video went viral, he was promptly fired. However, after lots of Twitter outrage, he was then un-fired and the remaining month of his contract was honoured.

Check out the super-fast descent from Martinez below.