Two of the toughest weeks in the recent history of the Tour de France were merciless on several teams and especially on Team Lampre-Merida, forced to continue without their leader Rui Costa in the third week.

Below-par for several days, in spite of a flattering 13th place overall, the Portuguese world champion was forced to call it quits after the second rest day because of bronchopneumonia.

"Rui Costa was very willing to continue and respect the Tour but the persistent state of not feeling well and the risk of forfeiting the rest of the season has convinced the world champion to retire from the race", the team announced at the start of stage 16 in Carcassonne.

The withdrawal was on par with the rest of the Tour for the Italian outfit, whose sprinter Sacha Modolo was forced out early on, followed by Argentina's Ariel Richeze while Spanish climber Rafael Valls also pulled out with a knee tendinitis. 

For team director Joxean Fernandez Matxin, the third week will consist in "being protagonists, with grind and fighting spirit".

In the Pyrenees, Lampre-Merida will count on the sideburns and moustache of Colombia's Jose Serpa, who led the way up Port de Bales on Tuesday, but also on the 2013 Vuelta champion, Chris Horner. The American's has one major wish from now until Paris and told letour.fr what it is: "Bring on the third week, but please make it sunny!"