Tour de France 2018: Chris Froome on ropes again as Gianni Moscon exits after punch

Team Sky are bracing themselves for further hostilities on the roads, when the Tour de France resumes on Tuesday following a rest day.

Chris Froome and his team have been on the receiving end of abuse from spectators, which is likely to be exacerbated after the decision to chuck Gianni Moscon out of the race for throwing a punch at another rider.

Moscon’s exit is a blow to the race ambitions of Geraint Thomas and Froome, having been a key domestique for the pair.

Thomas on Sunday called for an end to “the fight” from the French public but knows Moscon’s actions in hitting Elie Gesbert early in Sunday’s stage will do little to thaw relations.

The team posted an apology from Moscon, who said: “What happened was wrong and was a bad example coming from me to everyone.”

If Sky are true to their word, it could be his last race in the team’s colours.

Last season, Moscon was suspended for racially abusing Kevin Raza, after which the team said “any repeat will result in the termination of his contract”.

He later avoided sanction after allegedly causing Sebastien Reichenbach to crash. It was claimed Moscon had acted in revenge after his rival raised the issue of the Raza abuse.

Sky can take solace from the fact that all the other leading race contenders have seen at least one team member retire from the race.

As for Moscon’s future after the Tour, team boss Sir Dave Brailsford said: “We will address this once the Tour is complete.”