So why was this rule infraction not made public at the time (it may have been but I didn't hear about it)? sounds to me like UCI trying to smokescreen and cover their ass.
Instead we had Prudhomme remonstrating that the UCI hadn't taken action that they should have... but the UCI saying that it was only two warnings which technically didn't make it a breach. If there was this UCI rule that you weren't allowed to miss a test in the two months prior to the TdF... or you would be disqualified... then why wasn't that discussed earlier in the media?
I think its like you say CH. UCI knew about the breach. Rabo knew. And they both played it down, thinking that he would be only a KOM contender and not wanting to hurt the sponsor or the race or cycling... let it pass.
Then Ras's sudden yellow jersey likelihood was going to make some major egg stick to faces. If Ras had won... and it was found out that UCI failed to enforce their own rule and have him be a non-starter... imagine the hell to pay.
As it is... how can UCI be killing careers for doping transgressions... when they are not even accountable for themselves following their own rules. It was their responsibility to bar him from the race. It would have been seen as harsh... but a lot better than him winning something and then people finding out later that UCI had bent their own rules.
So we have the farce of Ras losing his career over him misreporting his whereabouts... and a couple of Rabo guys sacked... So who is getting sacked at the UCI for creating this whole mess by not enforcing Ras's rules breach and letting him ride?