Andre Greipel has stepped down from the sprint battle, but on the sidelines, his once-important rival Mark Cavendish (opens in new tab) has what it takes to succeed in the sprint at this year's Tour de France (opens in new tab) He told Wielerflits that he has shown that.

Last year, Cavendish made an unexpected spot in the French Grand Tour, winning four stages and the green jersey in a fairytale race that tied Eddy Merckx's longstanding record of 34 Tour de France stage wins. However, the level of the Quick-Step-Alpavinir sprinters is still high enough to warrant a run this year. (Fabio Jacobsen, meanwhile, won three races and the points jersey at the Vuelta a España last year, his first Grand Tour victory since his life-threatening accident at the 2020 Tour de Pologne.

"At the Tour of Oman, it was clear that Mark is still the fastest," Greipel said in an interview with Wielerfritz before Cavendish won the second stage of the UAE Tour, matching Greipel's career total of 158 wins.

"There is no reason to keep him at home. I saw early last year that he was improving. When I said that, people said I was crazy, but look how many times he won the Tour sprint. It's not up to me, but I don't think it would be wise not to take him to France."

Cavendish finished second in the first stage of the Tour of Oman and made powerful speed turns. He used that speed to win the second stage.

But Jacobsen is also off to a great start for 2022, winning two stages at Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana and two stages at Volta as Algarve, as well as points awards in both races.

"Fabio was impressive in Valencia," Greipel told Wielerfritz. 'He sprinted past Alexander Kristoff. He looks strong, so there is no reason not to take Fabio to the Tour. It's a difficult choice."

Jacobsen himself admits that the choice is still up in the air, noting that he is not the only sprinter on the team's long list for the Tour de France.

"The Tour de France is in the plans, but that means I need to be in good shape when the Tour de France starts," Jacobsen told reporters at the Volta ao Algarve.

Greipel was convinced that Quick-Step Alphavinir should not take both.

"In my opinion, two sprinters in one selection is always too many.