A duel thrives on contrasts. As riders, Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard most likely have extra in widespread than both man would admit, however the longer the pair outline this period of the Tour de France, the extra their rivalry has come to be outlined by their variations.
As with McEnroe and Borg or Senna and Prost, the thought has taken maintain that Pogačar and Vingegaard signify two very completely different modes of decoding their sport. On a superficial degree, it helps that Pogačar’s smiling exuberance contrasts so readily with Vingegaard’s extra reserved detachment.
The differing ambiences round their workforce buses – heat handshakes amongst employees at UAE Team Emirates, cautious fist bumps over at Visma-Lease a Bike – solely underscores that preliminary impression.
Even their shaving habits have been seized upon as a degree of divergence. “I can’t develop a moustache, so no,” Pogačar smiled when requested if he would copy Vingegaard’s new facial hair.
The distinction of their tactical approaches to this Tour, in the meantime, was illustrated clearly on the chemins blancs round Troyes on stage 9, when Vingegaard’s rigorously calibrated choice to not collaborate with Pogačar’s assaults was met with frustration from the maillot jaune. It served to intensify the caricatures of every man that exist within the well-liked creativeness. Here was Pogačar, the impulsive risk-taker, all the time racing for the hell of it. There was Vingegaard, sober of judgement, all the time racing with a thought to tomorrow.
In fact, every man was merely intent on using the stage in the best way that finest suited his capabilities on the day. Pogačar has a penchant for profitable races on gravel, whereas Vingegaard was understandably cautious about his prospects, particularly after his truncated build-up. As Philippa York identified on this web site, there isn’t a onus on Vingegaard to begin racing on this Tour till he feels himself prepared to take action.
Even so, the notion continues to linger that Pogačar and Vingegaard signify two completely different tactical ‘faculties’ of biking. If Pogačar’s forcing on the gravel was biking’s equal of Pep Guardiola’s excessive press, so the pondering went, then Vingegaard was ‘parking the bus’ within the method of José Mourinho. The debate lingered on Monday’s relaxation day – “It wasn’t an absence of ‘balls,’ I simply rode sensible,” Vingegaard mentioned – although Pogačar confessed to having uninterested in the entire subject when he reported for the beginning of stage 10 in Orléans on Tuesday.
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“About this racing clever or not, it is simply nonsense in biking,” Pogačar mentioned. “Right now, I’m within the chief’s jersey. For me, it is clever to be within the lead now with a very good hole. In the Tour de France, intelligence is essential, however it’s worthwhile to have the perfect legs to win.”
Third week
UAE Team Emirates sports activities supervisor Matxin Joxean Fernandez, in the meantime, was reluctant to delve too deeply into the whys and wherefores of Visma-Lease a Bike’s technique. In the Tour, like in any race, every squad races as they see match, no extra and no much less.
“You can solely actually speak about what you do your self. I haven’t got all the data, so I can not actually give a stable opinion,” Matxin informed Cyclingnews in Orléans. “I do not know why they did it, however I’ve the utmost of respect for our rivals and I’m not going to criticise them.
“Everybody is free to do what they need to handle their energy and restrict their weaknesses on any stage. Perhaps on this case, they have been simply trying to minimise their attainable weaknesses on terrain that did not swimsuit them – however that is simply an opinion as I haven’t got all of the details about their pondering.”
There have been query marks about Vingegaard’s readiness for this Tour given the intense accidents he sustained within the mass crash at Itzulia Basque Country in April, however the two-time champion has been stable to this point, approaching the halfway level in third place, simply 1:15 off Pogačar’s yellow jersey.
In his relaxation day press convention, Pogačar dismissed the concept that he was frightened of Vingegaard’s situation, occurring to warn Visma off “making an attempt to interrupt him mentally.” The occasional thoughts recreation, Matxin conceded, is all a part of making an attempt to win the Tour.
“The psychological facet is clearly essential too, riders ship messages to their rivals,” Matxin mentioned. “But what’s clear at this level is that Tadej could be very robust, he is in higher situation than he was on the Giro, so we’re simply centered on doing in addition to we are able to with Tadej and the workforce. If the others are higher or worse than beforehand, we’ll see as time goes by. You do not win the Tour together with your phrases, you win it together with your legs.”
Last yr, Vingegaard outlasted Pogačar within the third week of the Tour to say a powerful total victory, and Visma-Lease a Bike once more look like basing their technique on the Dane’s powers of endurance. The thought, it appears, is to remain within the hunt till the Tour’s last act within the Alps and that novel concluding time trial in Nice.
Matxin disagreed with the concept that Pogačar had any sort of advanced about Vingegaard’s third-week prowess. Pogačar, in spite of everything, upset Jumbo-Visma late within the 2020 version, when he divested Primoz Roglič of the yellow jersey on the penultimate day.
“Tadej gained the 2020 Tour on his personal benefit, and he gained the 2021 Tour on his personal benefit,” Matxin mentioned. “The 2022 Tour was misplaced due to one unhealthy day for Tadej, so we misplaced it. In 2023, they [Visma] gained it, they gained it within the time trial. Now in 2024, we have gained time within the time trial fairly than dropping it. We know issues can all change daily, however I can let you know that Tadej is stable, he is calm.”
Puy Mary and Pyrenees
Pogačar actually loved a relaxed afternoon on Tuesday when the Tour resumed after the primary relaxation day, ending safely in the principle peloton to take care of his 33-second lead over Remco Evenepoel. When he took a seat within the press convention truck, he acknowledged that Wednesday’s trek by the Massif Central to Le Lioran can be fairly extra eventful.
“They made it a bit too lengthy, however the last of the stage could be very good and explosive, with good climbs,” Pogačar mentioned. “It’s actually exhausting to foretell what is going on to occur tomorrow.”
The solely certainty is that Vingegaard and Pogačar will watch one another carefully from the climb of Puy Mary onwards. While Vingegaard’s true situation was a thriller forward of this race, Pogačar feels the Dane has by now supplied a agency indication of his degree.
“Yeah, I’ve a reasonably good, robust sense, and I may see my very own numbers,” mentioned Pogačar. “So far, we went tremendous quick within the time trial, we have been 20 seconds sooner than the report on San Luca and we additionally went report time on the Galibier. He’s in fairly fine condition, so for certain he is getting extra assured for the ultimate half. But we’ll see within the Pyrenees how robust he actually is.”
On each Tour, in different phrases, there comes a degree when the speaking stops.