Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) admitted he was just too far behind as Jumbo-Visma and then Wout van Aert lit up Stage 4 of the Tour de France on the final climb before the finish in Calais.
The two-time Tour de France winner is usually on the sharp end of aggressive races and the rider who makes the attacks. This time he had to go on the defensive and could only hope that all-time rivals Jonas Vingegaard and Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma) as well as Adam Yates and Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) didn’t miss out and gain time.
Luckily for Pogačar, Van Aert’s solo attack over the top of the final climb with 10km to go destroyed his own team’s chances of gaining time.
With Van Aert leaving alone, the leading riders reunited to finish eight seconds down. Pogačar finished safely in the 113-rider pursuit group and quickly emerged onto the podium for the White Jersey Best Young Rider ceremony.
He conceded that he had been caught and was lucky his rivals had escaped. He was quick to highlight the contrast in Van Aert’s and Jumbo-Visma’s tactics.
“I was too far behind to follow, so I just tried to get up there as quickly as possible to see what the situation was like,” he told multiple media outlets, including Cyclingnews, in the podium’s mixed zone .
“In the end it was ok because Wout van Aert even dropped his own teammates. When I saw that, I felt calmer and didn’t stress.
“It was the first big, deep ditch on the climb. I felt good, the legs are fine and the lungs are definitely working. I was just a bit out of position before the climb and had come from far behind, but it shows I’m in good shape.”
Pogačar recognized Jumbo-Visma’s strengths but tried to see that in a good light, perhaps wanting his rivals to take control of the Tour de France before playing his own cards in the crucial mountain stages and final time trial .
“They are really strong, especially Van Aert, he just beat everyone today, not even Vingegaard and Roglič could follow him. That’s okay, that’s a good sign,” he said.
Pogačar will face Jumbo-Visma on Wednesday’s cobbled stage to Wallers. Instead of attacking, he again seemed to favor a defensive tactic.
“Tomorrow I just have to survive,” he said of the paved stage. “It’s going to be a big stage and I hope nothing serious happens like falls or anything.
“I’m looking forward to it. I think it’s going to be a really tough stage for everyone and a great show on TV.”