While Mark Cavendish was sprinting to the win in the opening stage of the Abu Dhabi Tour, Owain Doull was caught up in a crash with Marcel Kittel.
As Doull rolled over the line in Madinat Zayed he saw a slice through his shoes, and when he made it back to the team car he found his foot to be bleeding.
Speaking to journalists after the stage, Doull told reporters that he had no doubt that the injury had been caused by disc brakes on Marcel Kittel’s bike.
With disc brakes at the centre of controversy for a number of months, pro riders were quick to take to Twitter to have their say on Doull’s incident…
1. Doull was quick to post a photo, which was picked up by many of his fellow riders
Although fortunately for me the disk brake went through my shoe and not my leg. Disk cut straight through my shoe into my foot pic.twitter.com/b6HMe7hRMb
— Owain Doull (@owaindoull) February 23, 2017
2. Alex Dowsett was caught up in the same crash as Doull and Kittel.
Doull's shoe,thankfully not a body part. And bear in mind there was just ONE bike with disc brakes in that crash, imagine a whole peloton?! pic.twitter.com/jyzD5JTQdc
— Alex Dowsett (@alexdowsett) February 23, 2017
To everyone driving the disc brake campaign in the pro peloton. Accountability, please consider the consequences. What's it really worth?
— Alex Dowsett (@alexdowsett) February 23, 2017
3. Peloton spokesperson Adam Hansen was one of the first to respond
Thats terrible @SophieSmith86. Through a few layers of leather. 1 rider with disc today, imagine more had them (¬_¬) pic.twitter.com/XdXSO1E5hI
— Adam Hansen (@HansenAdam) February 23, 2017
4. Doull’s team-mate Wout Poels called on the UCI to do more.
..@owaindoull @UCI_cycling riders safety before we try new things??
— Wout Poels (@WoutPoels) February 23, 2017
5. Leopold König hoped the riders could unite against disc brakes
Once again riders safety first, it's a shame we are not united as a riders and as a teams, we should stand more together🤝 https://t.co/VYUxCca2YZ
— Leopold König (@LeopoldKonig) February 23, 2017
6. #fail
#discbrake #fail @cpacycling @UCI_cycling @BIPCA_ https://t.co/YRtTRf2lJD
— Chris Froome (@chrisfroome) February 23, 2017
7. Gregory Rast was one of those to call for disc brake covers to be used
1 out of 158 riders in abu dhabi using disk brake and this happens! Imagine all of them use disks!! #coverup @UCI_cycling ?? https://t.co/DvtVXDczr5
— Gregory Rast (@gregory_rast) February 23, 2017
8. Larry Warbasse criticised the trial being conducted on “human test dummies”
You know that they say: "human test dummies are the best test dummies." 🤔……or maybe not https://t.co/U8NxkesP0Q
— Larry Warbasse (@larrywarbasse) February 23, 2017
9. Sam Bennett had a simple message
This is ridiculous! https://t.co/iv5TC7gIsn
— Sam Bennett (@Sammmy_Be) February 23, 2017
10. Matt Brammeier called on the UCI’s technical director Mark Barfield to “be bold”
Stand up Mark Barfield @UCI_cycling It's time to be bold
— Matt Brammeier (@Mattbrammeier85) February 23, 2017
11. And finally, Luke Rowe had this to say after Doull crossed the line with a few gaps in his bib shorts…
Nice ass @owaindoull 👌🏻
— Luke Rowe (@LukeRowe1990) February 23, 2017
