Stage five of the Tour of Switzerland was delayed on Wednesday as riders expressed their anger at Mark Cavendish for causing Tuesday's mass crash.
The Briton was given a time penalty and docked 25 points for changing his line and putting his colleagues in danger in the final sprint in the fourth stage.
Riders from the Cervelo, AG2R and Caisse d'Epargne teams were forced to quit after suffering injuries.
The start of Wednesday's stage was held up for around two minutes.
"We just want to send a message to Cavendish to ask him for more respect," said AG2R sporting director Gilles Mas.
Sebastien Hinault of AG2R was elbowed by the British rider, while Heinrich Haussler, Arnaud Coyot and Lloyd Mondory all picked up injuries and had to withdraw from the race.
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606: DEBATE
pigeons in the park
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Cavendish, riding for HTC-Columbia, was well positioned in the stage but touched wheels with Haussler, sparking a major pile-up.
Alessandro Petacchi picked his way through to win the stage, with Tony Martin retaining his overall lead.
A furious Haussler said after the race on Tuesday: "I didn't see Cavendish coming. He drove into my wheel and before I knew it, I went down and was lying on the ground. I could have won the stage."
The 25-year-old Briton, who joined Wednesday's stage with his right knee bandaged, said: "I'm not going to say that I'm not at fault but I don't think I should have been held as the sole person responsible.
"It's the worst fall of my career, the worst injuries that I've suffered. But there are riders who are in a worse state than me."
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