Mark Cavendish takes 194mph “absolute beast” SUV for drive around Isle of Man as “car enthusiast” Manx Missile named Aston Martin ambassador (before picking up knighthood); Pogačar’s “zone zero” hangover focaccia ride with F1 star + more on the live blog

It turns out Tadej Pogačar isn’t the only world champion who’s been celebrating over the past few days.

Yesterday, 2021 champion Elisa Balsamo got married to former pro and track rider Davide Plebani, in brilliantly colourful and classically Italian style, and with Italy’s cycling royalty gathered in attendance.

Elisa Balsamo and Davide Plebani got married today with the best and brightest of Italian cycling in the audience

The likes of Consonni, Alzini, Guazzini and Confalonieri were certainly all there and I’m sure plenty more too pic.twitter.com/9lqCOCbeUz

— Mathew Mitchell (@MatMitchell30) October 1, 2024

Nice touch by Balsamo to celebrate the return of a women’s version of Milan-Sanremo for 2025 by having her wedding resemble the colourful smoke-fuelled chaos of the Capo Berta.

Though I’m sure I can hear Carlton Kirby right now grumbling about the tifosi waving those pesky flares right in the riders’ faces as they try to make their way down the aisle.

Two years ago, you may remember, TV’s Amanda Holden made live blog headlines and angered cyclists across the UK by claiming, live on Britain’s Got Talent, that people who ride bikes with cameras were “asking for trouble”.

Holden’s comments came after ‘comedian’ and BGT finalist (and eventual winner, apparently) Axel Blake delivered a shockingly awful, obvious, and unfunny anti-cycling rant as part of his winning route, complete with references to “spiked shoes” (no idea), “spandex”, the Tour de France, and cyclists hating drivers cutting them off. Yes, it was that bad.

> Britain’s Got Terrible Cycling Takes: Amanda Holden says cyclists with cameras are “asking for trouble” after BGT contestant performs anti-cycling bingo comedy routine

Following Blake’s abysmal anti-cycling bingo performance – greeted with whoops of laughter from the probably delirious or possibly drugged-up audience that would still apply to watch that Ant and Dec-fronted rubbish – Holden, acting in her ‘talent judge’ capacity (I don’t get it either), couldn’t wait to join in on the fun.

“The whole cyclists thing, I’m so with you,” she said. “Why do they wear the cameras? They’re asking for trouble already!”

So, imagine our surprise when, fast forward to 2024, we found out that the very same Amanda Holden is taking part in a 250-mile cycle for charity. It’ll be 250 miles over five days, but still.

Yes, next week, the Heart Breakfast presenter will ride from her mum’s house in Bude, Cornwall, to Heart’s studios in London’s Leicester Square, taking in Somerset, Berkshire, Wiltshire, and Surrey long the way, to raise funds for Heart’s charity, Global’s Make Some Noise, which helps fund vital projects delivered by small charities tackling issues such as mental health, poverty, and homelessness.

“I can’t quite believe that I’m going to be cycling over 250 miles from my mum’s house in Cornwall to London for Global’s Make Some Noise – it’s a massive challenge!” Holden said in a statement announcing her latest challenge, which gets underway on Monday.

“I’m told it’s not going to be particularly flat so I’m gonna have buns of steel by the end of this! Knowing that every mile I cover will help raise funds for those local projects providing a lifeline directly to those who need it most is what will keep me going. Plus, I’ll get the nicest Cornish sendoff from my mum with a big cuddle!”

Anyone looking to donate to Global’s Make Some Noise should head over to heart.co.uk for more details.

Fair play to you, Amanda – but maybe a week spent cycling on British roads will open your eyes as to why some cyclists choose to wear cameras.

Let’s just hope she hasn’t been getting tips from Simon Cowell, anyway…

After a sensational summer which saw her, along with tandem partner Sophie Unwin, take two golds in the pursuit and road race at the Paris Olympics, before backing that up with two world championships silvers in Zurich last week, Jenny Holl has turned her attention to the next generation of Scottish racing talent, by helping launch Scottish Cycling’s first Women and Girls Strategy this week.

The strategy, launched at West Lothian Cycle Circuit to coincide with Scottish Women and Girls in Sport week and with the support of Holl and Scotland’s sports minister Maree Todd (who gamely joined Holl on a tandem for a spin around the track), aims to make a “step change in female participation” in bike racing.

While women’s participation in cycling is slowly on the rise in Scotland, the governing body’s new strategy hopes to accelerate this process.

The strategy and action plan – focused around the ‘five Rs’: Ride, Race, Role Models, Recognise, and Relationships – aims to achieve a 30 per cent increase in female members and event entries, a 10  per cent increase in retention within the Performance Pathway, 20 per cent more coaches, and a number of new partnerships with other organisations who can help support the these goals, by 2027.

“The launch of our first Women & Girls Strategy is a huge moment for Scottish Cycling and our community, and follows on from our commitment last summer to shift the dial on female participation in our wonderful sport,” Scottish Cycling Chief Executive Nick Rennie said at the launch.

“Scottish Cycling already has a number of initiatives aimed at females, which are slowly starting to shift the gender balance, however that rate of progress isn’t quick enough for our liking, and so this strategy, and supporting action plan, aims to really accelerate our work in this area.”

Meanwhile, double Paralympic champion Holl added: “It’s really great to see Scottish Cycling stepping up and pushing for more diversity within the sport, particularly in the women and girl’s space.

“For me, now is the perfect time – having watched the Elite Women’s Road Race at the Glasgow ‘super worlds’ last year, it’s clear to see that there is the support and appetite for women’s cycling in Scotland, we just need to help people access it.”

“Women and Girls in Sport Week is the highlight of my year every year, so to launch this strategy during this week is just fantastic,” SNP politician Todd said. “When we were discussing the UCI Cycling World Championships, which were held in Scotland last year, one of the opportunities we saw was to try and get more women cycling.

“Lots and lots of women would like to cycle, but very few of them do, and this strategy is about tackling that. I’m really keen that women and girls have the opportunity to participate in sport. That’s what this week is all about, and that’s what this strategy is about, and I’m absolutely certain it’ll have an impact.”

Tadej Pogačar will be hoping that his post-worlds hangover clears soon, as it was confirmed this morning that the newly crowned world champion will debut his rainbow jersey at the Giro dell’Emilia on Saturday, ahead of his attempt to win a fourth straight title at Il Lombardia the following weekend.

Pogačar has finished second at the last two editions of the Giro dell’Emilia, one of Italy’s most prestigious classics, which concludes with multiple ascents of the iconic and steep San Luca climb in Bologna, the scene of the Slovenian’s first concerted attack at this year’s Tour de France, which proved enough to put him in the yellow jersey at the end of stage two.

He’ll face stiff competition this Saturday, however, with three-time Giro dell’Emilia champion Primož Roglič and Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel also set to headline a strong field at the 215km race.

(Zac Williams/SWpix.com)

After that San Luca tune-up and debut in the rainbow bands, the UAE Team Emirates rider is expected to race Tre Valli Varesine, which he won in 2022, on 8 October, before heading to Bergamo for his final race of the season at Il Lombardia, where Pogačar will be hoping to win the seventh monument of his career and his fourth straight edition of the Race of the Falling Leaves.

If he pulls off that historic feat in Como, he would emulate Fausto Coppi’s four-year winning run in the late 1940s.

First, the Triple Crown, then potentially emulating Il Campionissimo – he just can’t help himself, can he?

Though just don’t wear white shorts with the rainbow jersey, or you’ll ruin everything, okay Pog?

Ah, the Belgians never disappoint with their weird and wonderful social media transfer announcements, do they?

Even Rocky didn’t see this one coming…😎

𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐥𝐟𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐤 Fauve Bastiaenssen 🐺🔥#Fauve2026 #TheWolfPack pic.twitter.com/9uoFdxzefb

— AG Insurance – Soudal Pro Cycling Team (@agsoudal) October 2, 2024

And fair play to Fauve Bastiaenssen, who moves across the Belgian divide from Lotto Dstny after a decent smattering of semi-classic top tens over the past few years, for invoking her inner Stone Cold Steve Austin for the video. Not that she’ll have a clue who that is, of course.

> No plans for further changes on “optical illusion” cycle lane which claimed over 100 trip victims, despite cross-party councillors’ efforts

When WW1 broke out in 1914, the British Army looked to recruit cyclist couriers, regardless of the quality of their teeth. pic.twitter.com/Z5LcA011SJ

— Quite Interesting (@qikipedia) October 1, 2024

Free bike and bad teeth permitted? Where do I sign up?

Have to say though, ‘Why not cycle for the king?’ sounds like a great potential cycle to work ad, to encourage royalists out of their cars in the morning…

As he explained in a recent episode of the road.cc Podcast marking the brand’s 20th anniversary, Rapha co-founder Simon Mottram may have viewed his now-iconic cycling clothing company back in 2004 as the antithesis of the loud, brash, and poorly designed kits that proliferated across the sport back in the ‘80s, ‘90s, and early noughties.

> 20 years of Rapha: Co-founder Simon Mottram on tiffs with Team Sky, MAMILs and cycling’s skin-suited future

But fast forward two decades (or Past Forward, as Rapha termed their birthday celebrations), and the company is busy paying homage to the time that cycling fashion forgot, releasing a new limited edition collection based on the cooler end of the vibrant ‘90s spectrum, with subtle and not-so-subtle references to EPO-era stalwarts Carrera (sans jean shorts), ONCE, and Motorola.  

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by PALACE (@palaceskateboards)

After two wacky change-out kits at the Giro d’Italia for EF Education-EasyPost, the collection also marks Rapha’s third collaboration with skateboard brand Palace.

“A selection of heritage Rapha silhouettes have been injected with Palace’s signature irreverence, with playful inversions of cycling’s distinctive language, colours, and sponsors,” the British brand said, announcing the collection, which goes on sale next week.

“Once again, our most disruptive collaborators help us look to the future – reimagining classic cycling style with post-modern panache.”

But no cartoon ducks this time, unfortunately. Although, since this is another Rapha-Palace collab, expect to see these babies appear for hundreds of pounds on eBay in the not-too-distant future.

Thoughts on the new threads? Reckon they’re good enough for the winter club ride?

> Is it okay to use a pressure washer on your bike? 

We’ve got some more updates from the fiasco currently engulfing UK-based cycling distributor I-ride, after we reported yesterday that all the company’s staff have been made redundant and are still without pay for last month after the business entered administration.

A source has told road.cc today that the news came as a shock to employees, with anger reportedly mounting about the situation, and that on the surface there were few indications that the company was so deeply troubled.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Ian Wilson (@ianwilson_martlet)

Orro Bikes, I-ride’s flagship in-house bike brand, had an active Instagram account up until around five days ago, and over the weekend Sir Bradley Wiggins was pictured riding an Orro bike as part of his ‘Ride With Wiggins’ charity sportive departing from Sandon Hall in Staffordshire. 

On Sunday, Ian Wilson, the co-founder and chairman of the Martlet Group, i-Ride’s parent company, posted a photo of Wiggins during the charity ride on his own Instagram, writing: “So proud to see Bradley Wiggins on an Orro Venturi bike today. Thanks to Project Pau for making it happen”.

Read more: > Major UK cycling distributor behind Orro Bikes enters administration and ‘all staff asked to leave without September pay’

Looks like the ‘greatest cyclist of all time’ debate is alive and kicking again.

It all seemed a done deal on Sunday evening when, in the wake of Tadej Pogačar’s devastating, Cannibal-esque 100km attack to win the world road race championships, Eddy Merckx himself appeared to admit defeat, telling L’Équipe “that it’s obvious that he is now above me”.

“Deep down, I already thought as much when I saw what he did on the last Tour de France, but tonight there’s no more doubt about it,” the Belgian – widely regarded as the finest male rider the sport’s seen – told the French newspaper after Pogačar joined him and Stephen Roche as the only men to secure the Giro-Tour-Worlds triple crown in a single season.

> “It’s obvious that he is now above me”: Eddy Merckx casts his vote in the GOAT debate… and he reckons Pogačar has now nipped ahead with “unimaginable” world championships victory

“Obviously, you can never compare eras, but this is an incredible rider. I didn’t attack with 100 kilometres to go in a world championship, but what he has done is unimaginable. It’s something we’ll remember for a very long time.

“He took a lot of risks against [Mathieu] van der Poel and [Remco] Evenepoel, but that didn’t scare him. That’s when you realise that Pogačar is an immense champion. He’s out of the ordinary.”

(Zac Williams/SWpix.com)

However, after a brief period of reflection on his own cycling legacy, Merckx has suddenly backtracked on his comments, insisting to Spanish site Relevo today that he was simply comparing Pogačar’s exploit in Zurich and his own worlds wins individually, and not their overall careers, before cheekily adding that the UAE Team Emirates rider “has a long way to go to be better than Eddy Merckx”.

When questioned by Relevo on his comments to L’Équipe, Merckx said: “I was referring to what he did at the world championships, on that particular course.

“It was incredible, and I said it like I thought it, but no, beyond that, I don’t think Pogačar is better than Eddy Merckx. He has only won three Tours. He is not better than me yet. He has a long way to go to be better than Eddy Merckx.”

When asked who he thinks, then, is the greatest rider of all time, the five-time Tour de France winner was equally unequivocal.

“I don’t know if it’s right for me to say this, but I think there are few cases of a cyclist who has competed and won so many races from January to December. There was a year in which I did about 190 days of competition. Now, however, they race about 80 days a year, no more.

“Pogačar does a bit of everything, it’s true, but few do what we did, contest the classics, the monuments, and the grand tours by stages. I think there is no comparison.

“He is a very strong cyclist, the best of his generation for sure. But look at what happened last year, Vingegaard was stronger than him at the Tour. And this year, when I think Vingegaard was not yet 100 per cent, he finished second.

“I don’t know, we’ll have to see how the rivalry develops in the coming years. What is clear is that Pogačar has a lot of class.”

Oof. Looks like the GOAT battle – however complicated, contrived, and somewhat meaningless it may be – has recommenced.

(Ed Sykes/SWpix.com)

Of course, as I mentioned on the live blog on Monday, it might be worth pointing out to Merckx – who was quick to note that Pogačar only has three Tours to his name, compared to the Belgian’s five – that at the same age (26), he had only taken two Tour de France victories, and had won the same number of world championship, Tour of Flanders, and Liège-Bastogne-Liège titles as the Slovenian.

To pull at that thread further, Merckx had two Giros to his credit by the time he turned 26, compared to Pogačar’s one, four editions of Milan-Sanremo, which the Slovenian is yet to win (not for want of trying), and two Paris-Roubaixs, which Pogačar is yet to attempt.

However, at that age Merckx was yet to win the Tour of Lombardy (he would go on to win two), while Pogačar is aiming to win his fourth straight Race of the Falling Leaves next Saturday.

Let’s just say, it’ll be worth revisiting this debate in a few years’ time.

An ambassadorial role with Aston Martin and a knighthood? It’s certainly been a bumper day for Mark Cavendish.

The greatest sprinter of all time (now that’s a much more straightforward debate) was at Windsor Castle today to officially receive his award from Prince William, capping a year in which he made cycling history by winning his record-breaking 35th stage win at the Tour de France.

“I’m a proud Brit,” the 39-year-old said after becoming Sir Cav. “I’ve represented the country many, many times in my career, and with all the proud of the flag and to know you’ve been recognised by your country and his Highness is something very, very special.”

“To have an award, to have it bestowed upon you, a honour is not something generally you’re used to as a sports person.

“As a sports person you have a goal and you put the work in to achieve that goal. As a cyclist it’s a race, it’s a win and you are generally in control of how you get there and it’s a process that comes.

“But to have something that is bestowed upon you and it feels different because it’s super humbling.”

Nice to see Cavendish sneak in one of his characteristic ‘supers’ even in an interview at Windsor Castle.

Reflecting on the ceremony itself, the former world champion said: “I was really nervous. His Royal Highness was superb. I didn’t honestly know I’d be nervous, but I’m so incredibly proud of representing the country.”

Cavendish also revealed that he’s spoken to Prince William about the ill-fated occasion on which they last met.

“I think the last time we met was at the Tour de France in Yorkshire and I crashed at the end of that stage. He asked me if I was doing anything else up there, and he was talking about my career, which was very nice.”

He continued: “I never thought growing up that anybody in cycling would be knighted and to just see that in my career, that cycling was important enough, with Sir Brad [Wiggins], Sir Dave [Brailsford], Sir Chris [Hoy], Dame Laura [Kenny], Dame Sarah [Storey], it’s pretty special.

“Cycling as quite small and niche when I started, to know it’s big enough and successful enough in this country, it gets recognition, it gets rewarded, that’s special enough for me.”

(ASO/Billy Ceusters)

After joking that one of his sons assumed that he’d walk out of the ceremony in full armour, Cavendish then gave a tantalising hint about his future career plans, which have been the subject of speculation since that all-encompassing 35th Tour stage win.

“I’ve still got races this year,” Cavendish said, referring to the upcoming ASO-organised crits in Singapore. “I’m still training for them, it will be really nice to race as a Knight Commander.”

Although, considering those crits can’t really be deemed races, is there a chance we may see Cav racing in the peloton in 2025? In any case, there’s one race he definitely won’t be lining up at next year, if he does decide to continue in the peloton.

“I’ve already said I won’t do another Tour de France,” he said. “That’s public knowledge, I won’t do another Tour de France.”

So… you’re saying there’s a chance?

> Cyclist made to feel like a “second-rate road user” after “out of order” driver mounts car on pavement to overtake oncoming rider on the wrong side of road

Just when you thought all the worlds drama was over…

Three days after Latvia’s Toms Skujiņš narrowly missed out on a bronze medal at the world road race championships – after putting in arguably the ride of his life on the punchy Zurich circuit – the 33-year-old’s national cycling federation has published an open letter to the UCI arguing that the man who did secure the third step on the podium, Mathieu van der Poel, shouldn’t have even made it to the finish, after TV footage clearly showed the defending champion mounting the pavement while attempting to overtake a number of riders.

The incident, which took place with around 59km remaining on Sunday’s elite men’s road race, saw Van der Poel jump up on the footpath to accelerate past Remco Evenepoel, Jai Hindley, and Tobia Johannessen to close down an attack, narrowly avoiding a line of fans watching from the pavement – a move the Latvian Cycling Federation said “endangered spectators” and should have resulted in the Dutchman’s disqualification from the race.

de heer #mvdp mag per direct uit koers gezet worden #Zurich2024 pic.twitter.com/rSn8FQgLkD

— De Waaslandwolf (@DeWaaslandwolf) September 29, 2024

Over the past few years, the UCI has attempted to clamp down on instances of riders mounting pavements to gain a few places in the bunch, a common feature in the Belgian classics, where positioning is paramount and road furniture is plentiful.

According to the UCI’s rules, mounting a pavement is punishable by a fine of up to 1,000CHF (£888), a 25-point deduction, and a yellow card. However, in cases where a rider is deemed to have earned a serious advantage or endangered others while mounting the pavement, they can be disqualified.

For instance, at the 2018 Tour of Flanders, Luke Rowe was ejected from the race after being caught weaving through spectators on a bike path, while 2023 Gent-Wevelgem winner Marlen Reusser was disqualified from this year’s race for the same indiscretion.

> Luke Rowe “gutted” at Tour of Flanders disqualification

And now, after Van der Poel’s pavement-hopping manoeuvre went completely unpunished at the worlds (with not even a yellow card in sight), potentially robbing their rider Skujiņš of what would have been a well-deserved bronze, the Latvian Cycling Federation’s president Sandis Akis has called on the UCI to “apply its rules consistently” and avoid favouritism to the sport’s biggest stars in an open letter protesting the non-decision.

(Zac Williams/SWpix.com)

“We wish to draw your attention to a potentially dangerous race situation and the fact that the video of this moment is circulating on social media showing a very dangerous move by Mathieu van der Poel during the Elite Men World Championship in Zurich 2024, as the Dutch rider rode on a walkway with 58.4 km to go,” Akis said in the letter.

“According to the rules (UCI Cycling Regulations 2.12.007: Race Incidents Relating to Road Events Rule 7.6), a rider jumping onto a walkway and endangering the public or other riders must be disqualified immediately.

“The issue isn’t merely that he was riding on the pavement, which would typically result in a fine of 200 to 1000 CHF; in this case, van der Poel wasn’t even given a fine. The real problem is that he endangered spectators, a violation that has consistently been penalized with disqualification this year, as seen with Marlen Reusser at the 2024 Gent-Wevelgem and Luke Rowe at the 2018 Ronde van Vlaanderen.

Akis continued: “Van der Poel almost rode into a spectator while overtaking three riders on a footpath with no other particular reason, as he was not avoiding a crash. After the race, the representative of the Latvian Federation tried to discuss this race situation with UCI commissaires. One of the race commissaires stated that all of the commissaires had seen the situation, deemed it not dangerous and something to be penalized.

“The Latvian representative insisted that the rules apply to everyone, but the commissaire argued that it wouldn’t be good for the sport, interpreting the rules as they saw fit. The Latvian representative was subsequently sent away. It seems that some are more equal than others, especially when it comes to unpopular decisions to be made.

“As a relatively small Federation, we are deeply concerned about this decision. If van der Poel had crashed into a spectator on the road, would that have been good or bad for our sport? We urge the UCI to apply its rules consistently to ensure the safety and integrity of cycling and not to leave this kind of potential accident without response, just because it would be so-called damage of reputation.

“We, as a part of the cycling world, expect the UCI to publicly explain the decision of commissaires to avoid similar situations, as paying no attention to this situation creates a ground for greater risk to racing in the future which is something no one wants.”

While we’re on the subject of cycling/fast car crossovers, newly crowned world champion Tadej Pogačar enjoyed a much-needed recovery ride yesterday in Monaco, following his outrageous, sport-redefining exploits in Zurich, in the company of Formula One star Carlos Sainz.

Like many of his colleagues, the Ferrari driver, currently fifth in the F1 standings and who recently announced a move to Williams for 2025, takes to the bike to keep his fitness up between races.

> Fine Young Cannibal: Is Tadej Pogačar the greatest cyclist of all time? Eddy Merckx thinks so

And as far as training partners go, they don’t come better than maybe, just maybe, the greatest cyclist of all time. Not that Pog – who seemingly enjoyed himself after winning the rainbow jersey on Sunday – would press too hard on the pedals during his rides with Sainz, of course.

And to make things even better for the Spaniard, his Monaco rides with the world champion also include a welcome stop for some lovely focaccia, cheese, and ham (or ‘Pogaccia’, as Sainz coined it) – which, for some reason, yesterday took place outside what appears to be a storage unit.

Ah, maybe that’s where the rest of us are falling short – stopping at actual coffee shops, instead of in industrial parks.

“Hey Carlos, how was focaccia today?” Pog, still clad in his normal UAE Team Emirates jersey (the rainbow stripes mustn’t have arrived yet), asked his training partner during a mid-ride video posted by Sainz on Instagram last night.

“Good, for a recovery ride, perfect. For me, it’s a zone four ride,” the Spaniard responded.

“Zone four for him – which zone for me? I don’t know, today was also hard for me,” the world champion laughed.

“Zone zero!”

He’s probably not wrong.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Carlos Sainz (@carlossainz55)

Camera operator Pog then turned to his partner and Liv AlUla Jayco pro Urška Žigart, who announced that the world champ, in a show of poor form, had not invited her along for some celebratory focaccia.

“They say it’s good for the hangover, eh?” Sainz then chipped in.

“It’s good for a hangover, I can tell you that!” Pogačar cackled back, with the knowing smirk of a man who could still ride everyone off the wheel on the Madone no matter how many espresso martinis he had the night before.

Even his hangovers are more impressive than ours, damn.

> Shimano’s AI automatic shifting touted to launch in 2025, as cycling components giant admits it “can’t break Bosch’s hold on e-bikes”

When a professional cyclist signs up to advertise any car brand, let alone one with a high-speed, ‘luxury’ SUV to flog, it’s fair to say the cycling community is going to be somewhat divided.

Some of the responses on social media and in the comments section to Mark Cavendish’s (sorry, Sir Mark Cavendish’s) new role at Aston Martin – and particular the former world champion signing up to be the face of the brand’s new 194mph DBX707SUV – have branded the whole thing “gross” or an example of the “motonormativity” rooted in the UK’s road culture.

“Just what the world needs: a three tonne, 10mpg, 200mph tractor,” Bigfoz said in the comments.

“To be fair, ‘salesman for enormous fatmobiles aimed at cyclist-hating Tory millionaires’ wasn’t on my Cav Post-Retirement Career bingo card,” Tlazolteotl noted on Twitter.

Meanwhile, The Clockwork Rides Again asked “Can he even see over the bonnet of that thing?”

Cheeky.

However, not everyone was overly upset by Cav’s latest venture.

“I think there isn’t such a really a big connection between cycle road racing and sustainability/cycle commuting,” said Cyclisto.

I know a lot of hobby cyclists who drive hundreds of kilometres or even worse fly to cycle a single race or go cycling vacation. It is quite common expensive bicycle owners have – guess what – expensive cars that are usually large SUVs.”

“Yeah, definitely,” responded Steve K. “There are notable exceptions who have gone from professional cycling (on either side of the mic) to active travel advocates (Boardman, Boulting) but they are the exception.

“Personally, I’ve had a very circuitous route, from taking up cycling in the late 90s purely for commuting; to getting a ‘proper; road bike and doing sportives etc in the mid-2000s; to getting properly interested in the sport on the 2012 wave; to now being a full-on utility cyclist using a bike as my main form of transport for pretty much everything.”

Gregory Kane added on Twitter: “If I was a retiring pro anything and a nice car brand said ‘read this statement and here’s a free car’ – yup, no worries pal, anyone else want me to read something?”

“Good for Cav,” said Alexuk. “You know guys, it’s okay to like cars and bikes at the same time. I’m no fan of SUVs, but not all car fans drive like c**ts. He’ll bag an SUV to transport the big family around in, for sure.”

And who knows, maybe Cavendish will follow in the footsteps of Chris Boardman (who of course enjoyed a close association with Lotus), and graduate to an important role championing road safety in the UK?

Or maybe not…

For some reason, Britain’s cycling stars have a long history of acting as ambassadors for car firms (see Chris Hoy and Chris Boardman’s involvement with Lotus) or promoting the latest fuel-guzzling, oversized SUV (David Millar’s divisive decision to show off his new Ineos Grenadier last year springs to mind).

And today, Mark Cavendish has joined both of those illustrious clubs, after the self-admitted car enthusiast was handed the keys of Aston Martin’s new “ultra-luxury performance” SUV for a quick spin (emphasis on quick) around the Isle of Man, to celebrate his appointment as the British sports car brand’s first ever Global High Performance ambassador.

With retirement seemingly looming after his record-breaking 35th Tour de France stage win in the summer – though nothing’s written in stone just yet, of course – Cavendish’s first foray into the post-cycling world will apparently see him make use of his “unparalleled speed on two wheels” (which Aston Martin must reckon is a transferable skill) to help expand the brand’s presence in international sport and “shine a spotlight on its class-leading performance cars”.

Which explains why the former world champion was tootling around the Formula One grid and chatting with Martin Brundle last week in Singapore, then.

According to Aston Martin’s press release, Cavendish’s “deep understanding of high performance makes him a true one-of-a-kind and will play a key role for Aston Martin”.

The Manx Missile’s ambassadorial role will also apparently enable Aston Martin to “tap into Cavendish’s knowledge to continue building on the high performance culture within the brand whilst bringing insight from the world of high performance competition into the brand’s product and marketing plans and will represent the company at selected events.”

And to mark his latest involvement with a sports car brand (though it’s fair to say the McLaren partnership while at Bahrain didn’t work out too well), Aston Martin shipped over to Cavendish’s home on the Isle of Man their brand-new DBX707, which the British company describes as the “supercar of SUVs”.

According to Aston Martin, “with a top speed of 194mph, the blistering DBX707 is a fitting match for Cavendish, who drove the car for the first time on the famed roads of the Isle of Man, synonymous with two-wheel speed.”

Now, I’m no expert, so maybe someone with a more in-depth knowledge of Top Gear will enlighten me, but why does a SUV need to have a top speed of 194mph? Is there a school run version of Formula One I don’t know about?

Nice to see Cav keeping it to a sensible 32mph

Anyway, at least they painted it to match Cav’s Tour green jerseys (kind of).

Along with the mandatory photos of Cav posing inside and outside the car, they even conducted a rather menacing photo shoot that made it look like the DBX707 was being driven by an impatient motorist, travelling very closely to the 39-year-old’s back wheel, furious that the fastest sprinter in cycling history was holding them up:

And to make things even more realistic, Aston Martin included a close pass pic for good measure (though I imagine Cav could be the one doing the overtaking in that particular shot).

Oi mate, 1.5 metres!

Anyway, Cavendish said he’s “excited to get stuck into his new role” showing off unnecessarily large cars.

“I’ve long admired the brand’s dedication to pushing boundaries, and now, to be part of that drive for peak performance is a unique privilege,” Cav said, in a statement that was definitely written by him, and him alone.

“For a car enthusiast like me, it really is a boyhood dream come true to represent the iconic Aston Martin wings. Together, I believe we can achieve something truly remarkable.

“I’ve been thoroughly enjoying the DBX707, it’s an absolute beast, handling the twists and turns of the Isle of Man with ease. They’ve even fitted it with a bike rack for me!”

Classic.