Sam Bennett has said he was "shocked" and "upset" at not being selected for the Tour de France by Bora-hansgrohe. He added while he understood the decision to leave him out of last year's race, and did not fight it, he found this year's situation much harder to understand.
He was still "processing" what had happened - Belgian sprinter Jordi Meeus selected ahead of him - and was trying to decide what to do next. While he wished Meeus well, Bennett was clear he was the one who should be the sprinter in the team.
He insisted his condition was going in the right direction and that his experience of winning stages in every Grand Tour he has ridden since 2018 spoke for itself, adding he was the rider with the successful record in three-week races.
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However, while he was deciding what he should do next, he believed he had lots more to give in terms of winning races. And he wanted to be in a team where he had the opportunity to ride - and aim to win - the biggest races on the calendar.
While Bennett did an interview with stickybottle after last weekend's National Road Championships, he spoke of the title race on the day rather than his disappointment about the Tour selection, which he was perhaps still processing at the time.
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However, he has spoken to Velo on the issue of the Tour and clearly believed until last week it was all systems go to ride the French Grand Tour, where he was aiming for stage wins and the green jersey, which he won back in 2020.
“I went to sprinter camp with my lead-out train. We were doing some great work. Then I got the call at the end of the camp to say I wasn’t going to the Tour. As I said, it’s really strange," he said, adding he was also very surprised to be passed over for selection because Meeus was favoured as the sprint option.
“I was never told that the place could be given to anyone else,” he said. “So I didn’t expect that. I thought everything was on track. I was doing what I know I need to do to get ready. I was just really, really disappointed, you know?”
He added as he went into the Dauphiné, where opportunities for sprinters very very limited, he felt his legs were coming good and, overall, he believed in himself for the Tour, saying "I’m the rider with the history in the Grand Tours".
If he needed confirmation of his sprinting he said he would have ridden the Tour of Slovenia rather than the Dauphiné, but rode the latter as he wanted to build his form for the Tour.
"I was coming into the best shape, you could see my climbing numbers. I just needed then to focus on the sprint once the shape was there. And that was the way it was going to be at the Tour.”
