Well it's taken most of a week but now we're down to the real racing . How do we know ? Simple , riders were throwing punches at the end of the race . After the finish of another hectic yet ultimately predictable field sprint , Carlos Barredo (QuickStep) was seen brandishing a front wheel at Rui Costa (Caisse d Pargne) . Seeing this , the old Brit commentator observed that the one true god , Big Tex , would never threaten someone with a wheel , he would know to use something much more club like , like maybe a seat post ". After realizing that a carbon fiber front wheel wouldn't have enough of an impact , he dropped it in favor of useing his fists . The two riders then proceeded to take swings at each other while the crowd was entertained by watching the two , 130 lb. bike riders try to do any kind of damage they could . After realizing the fight was going nowhere , the two were ultimately sepperated . Barredo said " I know my conduct was incorrect and I accept the fine for that . Next time I'll hit him with a crankset , not a front wheel ".

In a seperate incident , Robbie McCewen (Katusha) was pulled of his bike after the finish by an overzealous dope control chaperon . McCewen said he was shocked by the incident and after being released from hospital was hoping he would be able to start the following day . The chaperon stated "I know all these riders are doping and if I can't catch them at it , I will do whatever is necessary to keep them from ruining the race .

The McCewen incident has started a new round of anti-doping discussions with the latest suggestion being to allow the riders to do whatever they wish . The benefit which was pointed out would be far more aggressive racing . The prototypical rider would become a 225 lb. musclehead who would approach a 150 mile big mountain stage as an individual time trial . They would go all out from the start , some would drop dead on the side of the road and at the end of the day , they would load them up with more toxic chemicals and send them out again . Tour director Christian Prudhomme stated "We're always looking for ways to keep the race fair and this is one good option .

In other tour news from yesterday , some dudes got out in front of the race , the pack noodled along until they decided to start racing , they reeled in the break before the end , and some fast guys fought out the sprint . Thankfully , no one cried .