Could Mark Cavendish finally break Tour de France record with historic 35th stage win?

Sir Mark Cavendish delayed his cycling retirement for a year to race in the 2024 Tour de France. Credit: ITV4

Mark Cavendish must wait a little longer for his chance to break the record set by the great Eddie Merckx to claim his 35th Tour de France stage win.

The Manx Missile, 39, postponed his retirement by a year in a bid to break the record after crashing out of the Tour in 2023.

He returned to take one more shot at claiming the Tour stage win record outright, having matched Merckx in 2021.

But he will have to wait a little while longer after stage three saw a sprint finish won by Biniam Girmay.

Cavendish, from the Isle of Man, struggled on the very first stage with steep climbs and the Italian heat, and it remains to be seen if he has recovered enough to challenge for a stage win which would see him claim cycling immortality.

Intense heat saw him vomiting on the bike as he struggled through every pedal stroke, with his team-mates pouring bottles of water over him.

He eventually crossed the line more than 39 minutes down, around 10 minutes inside the cut, having offered a thumbs up to the TV cameras.

Cavendish is determined to put the horrors of the opening stage behind him as he attempts to win his 35th tour stage for his Astana Qazaqstan team.

It's thought there are four or five stages in this year's race where he may get a stage win.

Mark Cavendish is targeting a record breaking 35th Tour de France win. Credit: PA Images

Cavendish, who was knighted in the most recent King's Birthday Honours list, attempted to break the record in 2023, but his bid ended after he was forced to abandon the race following a crash.

Less than 24 hours after he came within a few metres of an historic victory in Bordeaux, Cavendish’s Tour ended in the back of an ambulance.

The cyclist went down hard and held his shoulder after a crash in the peloton around 60km from the finish of stage eight from Libourne to Limoges.

Mark Cavendish receives the MBE in 2011 Credit: ITV News

Cavendish won his first Tour stages back in 2008, taking four in total, and chalked up 20 in his first four participations.

He enjoyed four stage wins in 2021, equalling Merckx’s record with his victory on stage 13 in Carcassonne.

A list of the Manx Missle's stage wins in the Tour de France:

  • 1. 2008 - Stage 5

  • 2. 2008 - Stage 8

  • 3. 2008 - Stage 12

  • 4. 2008 - Stage 13

  • 5. 2009 - Stage 2

  • 6. 2009 - Stage 3

  • 7. 2009 - Stage 10

  • 8. 2009 - Stage 11

  • 9. 2009 - Stage 19

  • 10. 2009 - Stage 21

  • 11. 2010 - Stage 5

  • 12. 2010 - Stage 6

  • 13. 2010 - Stage 11

  • 14. 2010 - Stage 18

  • 15. 2010 - Stage 20

  • 16. 2011 - Stage 5

  • 17. 2011 - Stage 7

  • 18. 2011 - Stage 11

  • 19. 2011 - Stage 15

  • 20. 2011 - Stage 21

  • 21. 2012 - Stage 2

  • 22. 2012 - Stage 18

  • 23. 2012 - stage 20

  • 24. 2013 - Stage 5

  • 25. 2013 - Stage 13

  • 26. 2015 - Stage 7

  • 27. 2016 - Stage 1

  • 28. 2016 - Stage 3

  • 29. 2016 - Stage 6

  • 30. 2016 - Stage 14

  • 31. 2021 - Stage 4

  • 32. 2021 - Stage 6

  • 33. 2021 - Stage 10

  • 34. 2021 - Stage 13