MONTPELLIER, France: Australian Cadel Evans was in a pessimistic mood after finding himself almost three minutes off the pace just four days into this year's Tour de France.

His Silence-Lotto team finished 13th, two minutes and 35 seconds behind Lance Armstrong's Astana, in Tuesday's 39-km team time trial, showing a lack of depth when Evans himself has probably never been fitter.

"Obviously, this is not a good result," Evans, Tour runner-up in 2007 and 2008, told reporters.