Caleb Ewan has two massive problems as he battles for his sixth Tour de France stage win.
While the Australian sprint ace now has had a second leadout teammate crash, rival Jasper Philipsen has Mathieu van der Poel in his corner.
Ewan said finishing second to Philipsen in the crash-marred finish to stage four on Wednesday was "bitter", but is also encouraged by his form.
After Ewan's main Lotto-Dstny leadout rider Jasper De Buyst crashed on stage two, teammate Jacobo Guarnieri was among the riders to go down in the high-speed finish at Nogaro.
While De Buyst is continuing, Guarnieri reportedly is out of the Tour with a broken collarbone.
Philipsen, meanwhile, won his second-straight stage as van der Poel again piloted the Alpecin-Deceuninck sprinter brilliantly to the finish.
"I know I’ve got the speed to win, but everything has to come together to do so," said Ewan.
"Although it’s a bitter second place, it’s nice to battle for the stage victory. I’m getting closer and I will keep on trying.
"With the crash of Jasper and also Jacopo coming down today, we again needed to change plans. If I’m surfing wheels in the sprint, I also need a bit of luck to win."
Ewan also pointed to van der Poel being a huge factor in Philipsen's favour.
The Dutch star, who added the Paris-Roubaix to his glittering palmares earlier this year, is normally the one winning.
"Philipsen has one of the best riders in the world leading him out," Ewan told the Velo website.
Ewan had finished third in Monday's stage as the Tour moved back into France after starting in Spain, and he again proved a serious challenger for the flying Belgian on day four.
The Australian shot through a gap in the dying moments of a furious bunch sprint to take second place.
Ewan won his fifth Tour stage three years ago.
"Caleb was right next to me. I wasn’t too confident," Philipsen said.
"He almost caught up with me at the end, it was really nerve-racking.
"I’m extremely proud to have won twice in a row. The finish was super fast, we felt like race cars."
German rider Phil Bauhaus was third to make it the same top-three finishers as Monday.
The 181.8km stage from Dax to Nogaro in southwestern France was almost totally flat and it was uneventful until the chaotic finish.
British rider Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) retained the race-leader's yellow jersey heading into the Pyrenees mountains.
Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe) moved up to seventh in the general classification, while fellow Australian Ben O'Connor (AG2R Citroen) dropped to 24th.
Yates maintained his six-second advantage over two-time Tour winner and teammate Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia.
The leader's twin brother Simon Yates, riding for Australia's Team Jayco AlUla, is in third.
"We’ll see how it plays out tomorrow. It’s the very first chance for a breakaway, so all hell will break loose at the start," Adam Yates said.
"Then, there are the bonuses on the last climb, so it’s going to be a bit difficult for me (to keep the yellow jersey)."
Wednesday's 162.7km trek from Pau to Laruns includes a daunting 15.2km grind up Col de Soudet.
- with AP
