Peter Sagan (Tour de France, 2017)

Of all the people on this list, Peter Sagan’s disqualification is probably one of the most controversial – he’s certainly not short of supporters from the pro peloton who felt his punishment was harsh.

But nevertheless, after his ‘dangerous sprinting’ saw Mark Cavendish suffer a race-ending crash, and was deemed worthy of expulsion from the race, the world champion had no choice but to pack his bags.

Here’s the crash that resulted in Peter Sagan being disqualified from the Tour de France https://t.co/lHEiAxw3l5 pic.twitter.com/M31gQtczwd

— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) July 4, 2017

In a chaotic sprint finish to stage four of the 2017 race in Vittel, Cavendish tried to squeeze through a gap on the barriers, only for Sagan to cut across him and force him into the barriers, flicking an elbow out as Cavendish fell.

Was it deliberate? Was the punishment fitting? The debate will rumble on and on…

Vincenzo Nibali (Vuelta a Espana, 2015)

Vincenzo Nibali’s 2015 Vuelta a Espana disqualification was called a ‘severe penalty’ at the time by his Astana team, but the Shark had no case to answer after TV cameras caught him grabbing a tow from the team car.

With his Vuelta a Espana hopes taking a hit – literally, as he crashed with 30km of stage two remaining – Nibali’s desperation to get back to the bunch proved too much.

After burning out his team-mates, the team car – driven by Alexander Sheffer – pulled up alongside him and the two were soon rapidly accelerating up the road.

And the chase, ultimately, did not do Nibali any good anyway as he finished almost 90 seconds back on the stage.

After race commissaires met to discuss his little manoeuvre, however, his finishing time became a moot point as ‘DSQ’ was stamped by his name instead.

Chris Froome (Giro d’Italia, 2010)

Chris Froome’s maiden Giro d’Italia for Team Sky ended with a disqualification after the Kenyan-born Brit hitched a ride with a police motorbike.

Froome – who was suffering with a knee injury – found himself off the back on the Mortirolo climb on stage 19 and grabbed the bike to get a pull to the top.

He said post-stage his intention was only ever to reach the summit, where a soigneur awaited, and then climb off but after being spotted by a commissaire he was sent packing instead.

A 200 swiss francs fine accompanied the DSQ but Froome of course bounced back strongly after ridding himself of the injuries and illness that held him back during his early career.

Gianluca Brambilla and Ivan Rovny (Vuelta a Espana, 2014)

Who was the best rider in the breakaway on stage 16 of the 2014 Vuelta a Espana? “There’s only one way to settle this,” as Harry Hill might say, “Fight!”

Unfortunately, Gianluca Brambilla and Ivan Rovny must have had similar ideas after coming to blows as they approached the day’s penultimate climb.

Riding in a 13-man move, Brambilla called Rovny out for his perceived lack of effort and, well, it didn’t go down too well.

Jerseys were grabbed, fists were swung, punches were landed – leading to Rovny requiring new sunglasses – and then ultimately the commissaires got involved.

It was nearly half-an-hour later that a decision was announced, with Brambilla having attacked with two other riders off the front and Rovny having returned to the bunch to help with the chase.

Despite both riders clearly having an impact on the remainder of the stage, their race was cut short as the red commissaires’ car pulled up alongside to issue the bad news.

Brambilla called it a ‘sad day’ on Twitter, though he got some support from Rovny’s team owner Oleg Tinkov who had said it was part of the ‘SHOW’ a la hockey. We’re not so sure about that Oleg…

Mark Renshaw (Tour de France, 2010)

Mark Renshaw has made a name as being lead-out man extraordinaire for Mark Cavendish, playing a key-role in many of the Manx Missile’s biggest wins.

But in leading Cav out on stage 11 of the 2010 Tour de France, the Australian overstepped the mark in the eyes of the race commissaires.

After hitting the front, Renshaw found himself with Tyler Farrar’s lead-out man Julian Dean for company and used his head in a bid to get rid of his rival. Literally.

The Australian insists it looked worse on TV – his headbutts, he said, were the only he could stay upright after Dean moved off his line.

The race jury disagreed – not least because Renshaw then nearly drove Farrar into the barriers after dropping Cavendish off at the front.

Cavendish won the stage, but had to make do without Renshaw for the rest of the race after the Australian was sent home – not that Cav seemed to mind, as he went on to win two more stages.