Powerful Pogacar leaves rivals with a mountain to climb

Tadej Pogacar dominated Jonas Vingegaard on the slopes of Hautacam to take a commanding lead in the Tour de France.

- Jeremy Whittle

Tadej Pogacar dominated Jonas Vingegaard on the slopes of Hautacam to take a commanding lead in the Tour de France. After the first summit finish of 2025, the defending champion's next overall victory now appears an inevitability. Pogacar beat his rival to the ski station finish by well over two minutes and now leads the Tour by more than three and a half minutes, with nine stages remaining.

Pas de suspense, the French would say, and after the Slovenian's eighth career stage win in the Pyrenees, Vingegaard is scrambling to sustain a meaningful challenge. If Pogacar had been scared when crashing in Toulouse, 24 hours earlier, he showed no ill effects as he dealt a lethal blow to Vingegaard's aspirations under a fierce Pyrenean sun.

"I feel at the best moment of my career," he said. "I'm riding in the rainbow jersey, I ride with an amazing team, so it's like a fairytale for me. I think once this fire goes out, I will probably decline in performance, but I'd say that now is the peak of my career, and I'll try to hold it for as long as I can."

He did admit to being anxious prior to the stage, however. "I was nervous at the start, a little bit cranky maybe," Pogacar said. "There was the role of 2022, when I lost the Tour here [at Hautacam]. I lost it that day and I guess I was really motivated."