Peter Sagan (Cannondale) took his fourth runner-up place in this year’s Tour today, losing to the only other sprinter in the first group that formed in the crosswinds – Mark Cavendish.

The young Slovak admitted he made a mistake in the final and said that he still has to learn. Despite being one of the few riders that made the first echelon when Team Saxo-Tinkoff split the peloton, Sagan wants to forget about today’s stage as soon as possible.

“I’m happy to have made the front group in such a stressful and hard stage, but I’m not happy not about my sprint,” he admitted. “It was my fault; I must be in Cavendish’s wheel, not let him take mine! I certainly do not want to see the video of this sprint.”

“I don’t like to make mistakes, even if it’s hard to win against Cavendish in a fast sprint. Anyway, I’m still young, and I learned a valuable lesson for the future. I’m disappointed but I hope to have a new chance tomorrow to get even.”

Despite losing the sprint to Cavendish, Sagan still holds a big advantage in the points classification, having collected 357 points so far. Mark Cavendish has 273 points while André Greipel (Lotto-Belisol), who missed the front echelon today, has 217.