Tinkoff-Saxo’s fast man Peter Sagan took 3rd place on stage 7 of Tour de France in a traditional head-to-head sprint, where Mark Cavendish drew the longest straw. Sagan notes that despite a lack of karma, he believes that the sought-after stage win will materialize. Alberto Contador was pleased with the outcome of the stage and looks forward to Mûr-de-Bretagne.
 
After crossing the finish line in third place behind Mark Cavendish and André Greipel, Sagan told the press that his spirit is high despite taking his fifth top-three placing during the first week of racing at Le Tour.
 
“It’s not easy, that’s for sure. But it will come, just be patient. It was a very difficult sprint but I think I’m doing well. I didn’t crash and I was there in the finale. I was on Degenkolb’s wheel just before the final sprint and then I was on the wheel of André Greipel in the final meters but Cavendish was very fast today. I gave it my best and now I look forward to tomorrow and then we’ll start to think about the team time trial. I think the most important is that I’m in good condition and I have avoided crashes and I will definitely try again”, says Peter Sagan, who remains uncertain whether the climb to Mûr-de-Bretagne will suit him.
 
“I heard that tomorrow could be a good finish for me but we will see. It’s right that I’m getting closer to the yellow jersey but it will be very difficult to overtake Froome tomorrow, I’m not a climber and the final climb is very hard and with the karma I have right now it will be difficult, that’s for sure. It's impossible for me to drop him in a climb and the time bonus might not be enough. But I can try. With my karma, I don't know what I can hope for, I keep finishing second and third.  But I'm doing well. The most important is to not crash. I have to keep being the closest possible to Greipel till the mountain stages," smiles Peter Sagan.

Stage 7 from Livarot to Fougéres took the riders 190.5km through rolling terrain in what team captain Alberto Contador describes as a somewhat less hectic day.
 
“For us it was a good day and, in theory, a calmer one although there is always incredible nervousness in the peloton but we made it. We didn't have any crashes, with the exception of a small fall I had in the neutralized part of the start but it wasn't anything to worry about. Funnily, we were just talking about the recent crashes when a group of four-five riders got tangled in front of me and I was unable to avoid them. As I said, I got off unscathed”, says Alberto Contador and adds:
 
“In what regards tomorrow's stage, we will have to see what happens. In 2011 I was close to getting a victory at the Mûr-de-Bretagne although I think that it will most probably be a stage suited to sprinters such as Peter and I feel confident we can have a good race”.

For Steven de Jongh, Tinkoff-Saxo Head Sports Director, the focus will now switch to Saturday’s stage.
 
“Today was definitely a less hectic day than the previous stages. It was hot and the stage was done at a stable pace in what turned out to be a traditional sprinter’s stage. Peter once again came close in the sprint but the competition is very hard and today was more or less a flat sprint. I think the boys did well, did what they had to do to conserve energy whenever possible, while assisting Alberto. Tomorrow will be much more tricky in the finale with Mur de Bretagne and I don’t think it’s possible to make any certain predictions other than it will be important to stay well-positioned in the final kilometers”, finishes Steven de Jongh.