However, while Merckx will always be the one that young and old cyclists compare with, there is one rider who not only crossed swords with the best but drove Merckx to his knees. This is the story of Luis Ocaña, the Spanish climber who did what many thought was impossible – he broke Merckx. He didn’t just beat him; he obliterated him. And yet, history remembers Merckx as the greatest of all time while Ocaña remains an asterisk. A man who had it all and lost it in the cruellest of ways. This is the story of a rider who could have been one of the all-time greats but was ultimately undone by bad luck, brutal crashes, and the relentless force of destiny.
Ocaña-Merckx rivalry in the making
Luis Ocaña wasn’t just another contender. He was a force of nature, a rider who embodied aggression and unpredictability. Born in Spain but raised in France, he had the relentless climbing ability of a true Spanish mountain goat combined with the tactical mind of a seasoned European racer. By 1971, Ocaña was in his mid-20s. While he was still new to the racing world (he had started racing professionally just 3 years previously), Ocaña had made a name for himself as a relentless climbing machine. In his first year on the professional stage, he became the Spanish champion. In 1969, he jumped right into the big games, winning the prologue, two time-trial stages, and the Mountain classification in La Vuelta. He finished a close second in the GC. A mistake he fixed just a year later. Along with his first Grand Tour, Ocaña managed to win a stage to Puy-de-Dôme and finished 31st in the 1970 Tour de France.
On the other hand, by the late 1960s, Eddy Merckx (the same age as Ocaña) was already devouring the competition – winning races at will, breaking records as if children set them. In a nutshell, if you lined up against Merckx during the late 1960s and early 1970s, you were practically racing for second place. However, in 1971, Ocaña decided he wouldn’t be just another name on Merckx’s victim list. He had other plans.
The 1971 Tour de France
The 1971 Tour de France was supposed to be another chapter in the legend of Eddy Merckx. By this point, he had already won the Tour in 1969 and 1970, and nobody truly believed anyone could stop him.
Somewhat expected, Eddy Merckx started strong. The flat stages were hardly a problem for the Cannibal, who ate his competitors with ease. Ocaña remained hidden in the background. Following the advice of five-time Tour winner Jacques Anquetil, the Spaniard patiently awaited the climbs. Come stage 8, the first summit finish, Ocaña was ready to shine. 5 km before the finish, the Spaniard launched a devastating counterattack and, at one point, gained a 40-second lead over the chasers. Merckx managed to spring into action and reduce the loss, but Ocaña was already third in the GC, and the best was yet to come.
The day Ocaña obliterated Merckx
During Stage 10, Ocaña once again showed his power, but the true show was reserved for Stage 11, from Grenoble to Orcières-Merlette. The stage was unforgiving, featuring nearly 4,000 meters of climbing across multiple Alpine passes. Ocaña, sensing a rare moment of weakness from Merckx, launched an attack that would become one of the most legendary performances in Tour history.
While Merckx struggled in the heat, Ocaña rode like a man possessed. He left the Belgian champion behind, and by the time he crossed the finish line, he had put an astounding 8 minutes and 42 seconds in front of the Cannibal. To put this into perspective, at a time when Merckx dominated nearly every race he entered, Ocaña had just obliterated him.
The Spaniard set such a high pace that after the race, 61 cyclists couldn’t finish in the allowed time. This meant only 32 riders were left in the race. Later, the organisers decided to allow all but three to remain in the race.
Ocaña didn’t just mop the floor with Merckx and other legends like Van Impe and Zoetemelk, but he single-handedly was about to blow up the entire Tour de France. This wasn’t just a stage win – it was a statement. The cycling world erupted with speculation. Could this be the man to finally dethrone Merckx? Merckx, to his credit, was not one to concede easily. Over the next stages, he tried to chip away at Ocaña’s lead. However, Ocaña matched every move and entered the Pyrenees with a comfortable lead, looking poised to claim his first Tour de France title. But, alas, faith had a different plan.
The almost champion
The Col de Menté, a brutal Pyrenean pass, was where Ocaña’s dream turned into a nightmare. On Stage 14, the race was already tense – Merckx, knowing he needed to regain time, had been attacking relentlessly. But what neither man expected was that the weather would be the ultimate deciding factor.
As the peloton began its descent down the Col de Menté, the skies opened up. Rain poured down, turning the narrow, winding roads into a treacherous slip-and-slide. Riders were struggling just to stay upright. Many got punctures, and Ocaña was not spared. However, unlike the others, he dared not stop, as Merckx was exploding that day. By that point, Ocaña had countered about five attacks from the Belgian and was not ready to give up due to a trivial problem like a punctured tyre. 3 km from the top, both riders overran a flooded left bend and fell. Merckx quickly got up and continued with minor bruises. Ocaña, however, was not that lucky. Other riders also missed the turn and crashed right into the Spaniard’s unprotected body.
Ocaña, however, was determined to win. He stood up, waving for a spare wheel from his team car. But fate was cruel that day. Another rider came out of the corner and hit him one more time. This time, Ocaña fell to the ground, unresponsive and struggling to breathe.
An ambulance was dispatched and quickly took the almost champion to the summit, where a helicopter transferred him to the nearby hospital. The yellow jersey wearer was out.
The next morning, Ocaña was still in the hospital, unable to even sit on a bike, while Merckx continued his march to his third Tour de France victory in a row. Out of respect for his fallen competitor, the Belgian refused to wear the yellow jersey he received after Ocaña dropped out. Ocaña had broken Merckx – but the Tour had broken him.
Another tour, another shot
After one of history’s most heartbreaking Tour exits, Ocaña returned to the 1972 Tour de France, seeking revenge. But if the 1971 race was cruel to him, the 1972 edition was downright merciless. Merckx himself was doubting whether to join the Tour, as he wanted to conquer La Vuelta that year. But with many rightfully claiming he only won 1971’s Tour due to luck, the Cannibal decided to prove them wrong. He was out for blood.
Both riders were playing carefully; Ocaña was patiently waiting for the mountain stages, while Merckx was storing energy to counter the explosive power of the Spaniard. Thus, by the end of stage 6, none of them was in the lead. Merckx was 2nd, 11 seconds behind Guimard, and Ocaña was 4th, a minute behind the leader. Stage 7 was Ocaña’s time to drive his first devastating attack. The Spaniard started aggressively from the get-go, and after his second attack, only Merckx could keep his wheel.
But fate struck again. Ocaña got a puncture, and shortly after, he crashed with another rider. Merckx got away. He finished gaining 1 minute 49 seconds over his biggest rival.
Merckx knew that Ocaña was the only one that could beat him. So, he stuck with the Spaniard like a shadow. On stage 12, Van Impe and Agostinho attacked, but Merckx didn’t care. He stood on Ocaña’s wheel. He knew that if the Spaniard managed to escape, he’d eat up Merckx’s lead in just one stage.
But once again, Ocaña drew the short stick. The Spaniard visibly started slowing down. Over the next three stages, he lost over 4 minutes to Merckx and even lost his second spot to Guimard. After stage 14, the doctors found out that Ocaña was racing with a lung infection caused by his fall in the 7th stage. Even so, Ocaña was a force to be reckoned with. With just half of his lung capacity, he gave the best cyclist in the world a run for their money. But in the end, the stats showed DNF.
Finally at the top… but without Merckx
A year later, Ocaña got his revenge. In 1973, he dominated the Tour de France, winning by an absurd margin of 15 minutes. His climbing was relentless, his time trials were strong, and he left his competition gasping for air. Except, one thing was missing: Merckx.
The Cannibal had skipped the Tour that year, choosing instead to focus on the Vuelta and the Giro. For Ocaña, the win was bittersweet. Yes, he was a Tour de France champion, but the asterisk next to his victory was undeniable. He hadn’t beaten Merckx. And that haunted him.
When the body fails, the mind follows
After his 1973 Tour win, Ocaña was never the same. His body started breaking down, injuries piled up, and his aggressive riding style took its toll. While Merckx continued adding to his legacy, Ocaña faded from the spotlight.
By 1977, he had retired, his career cut short, not by lack of talent but by sheer cruel misfortune. He had all the pieces of greatness, but cycling – like life – isn’t always fair.
And Ocaña? He never truly let go. Retirement was not kind to Luis. He battled financial problems, declining health, and depression. He tried wine-making and even dabbled in cycling management, but nothing filled the void left by his unfinished legacy. Then, in 1994, tragedy struck. At the age of 48, Ocaña took his own life.
The Legend that should have been
Indeed, Merckx went on to become synonymous with cycling. A name that transcends time. An idol and a role model for aspiring cyclists. A fate Ocaña deserves just as much. In a time when Merckx was killing it, Ocaña was there to knock him down a peg. A reminder that though he was the best, there was one rider that could take him any time, any day in any conditions.
But Ocaña was so much more than a footnote in Merckx’s legacy. He was a rider who deserved more, a fighter who never gave up, and a cautionary tale of how cycling is just as unforgiving, unjust, and unpredictable as life itself.
