VIEW FROM THE TEAM CAR
STÉPHANE GOUBERT DS, AG2R CITROËN
The GP La Marseillaise was the first race of the season and was won by Aurélien Paret- Peintre in a 30- rider bunch finish. Ag2r Citroën directeur sportif Stéphane Goubert explains how they did it...
We had a few climbers in the squad, and Marseille is a hilly race, so our strategy was an aggressive one. We wanted to be actors in the race, to be able to create a favourable situation. We had no leader, yet everybody was a leader. We had Ben Gastauer, Aurélien Paret-Peintre, Tony Gallopin and Lilian Calmejane up there, and each attacked in turn. At the finish, maybe Tony was the fastest of the group on paper, but it was an unusual sprint with a headwind. Aurélien’s job at that point was to lead out Tony, but we’d said in the briefing to everybody, if you see a chance, go for it.
The key to winning was having that open strategy, to give the riders the chance to find openings when they presented themselves. Our main goal was to make a hard race with lots of movement, rather than having a plan for a certain rider to go at a particular point in the race. To make a parallel with football, our strategy was to go for goalscoring, not defending. With riders like John Degenkolb in the race, we couldn’t just take him to the finish.
This is the third time we’ve won the GP Marseille in four years. Success like that puts a bit of pressure on the boys, but on the other hand it gives us confidence. I kept saying over the radio, this race is ours, we are the home team, we know how to win it.
It was Aurélien’s first win, and it was a surprise to us that he was such a good sprinter. We already knew he could climb well, and have always thought he’s the kind of rider who is fast enough to win from a small group, but to win from a bunch including riders like Coquard and Trentin was impressive. He’s young, but is already showing the qualities of a leader - he speaks up in the bus and he was quick to thank the team. He’s relaxed and calm and a good communicator, and he’s one of those riders who talks a lot on the radio, always asking questions and looking to learn.