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He won the race in 2022 and 2023 but, according to Jonas Vingegaard, he smashed through previous performance levels at this year’s Tour de France.
The problem? The peaks of his form were matched by troughs too.
“On some stages at least I have had the highest level that I have ever had. I think also on other stages I’ve had the lowest level for many years for me,” the Tour runner-up said at the post-race press conference in Paris.
“There was a bit more like a few bad days, to be honest. It was some kind of confirmation that I am better than I have ever been, but also it has shown that I can have a few bad days as well.”
Vingegaard triumphed in 2022 and 2023, cracking Tadej Pogačar on both occasions. And while his buildup last year was badly affected by a huge crash in the Itzulia Basque Country race, one which left him with two punctured lungs among other big injuries, he said he reached his-then best ever level while finishing second to Tadej Pogačar.
He would, he acknowledged after that race, need to crest new highs if he was to fully take on the stomping Slovenian rider.
In terms of that goal, he did break through his previous level. However his inconsistency was something which simplified Pogačar’s path to a fourth Tour win.
Where things unraveled
Vingegaard congratulated Pogačar at the end of the penultimate stage. (Photo: Chris Auld)
This year’s race made one thing clear. Vingegaard had greater explosiveness than before and was able to contain Pogačar’s all-out attacks in the opening 10 days.
That was encouraging but there were also days where he gave away chunks of time. The majority of his time loss came on the 12th stage to Hautacam, where he surrendered 2:10. The next biggest were in the TTs, where he gave up 1:05 on stage 5 and 36 seconds on stage 13.
Those three days represented the biggest setbacks to his Tour hopes.
Other than that, it was all single digit losses. He dropped six seconds in time bonuses on stage 4, four seconds in time bonuses on stages 7 and 12, four seconds plus two seconds in time bonuses on stage 14, two seconds on stage 16, and nine seconds plus a two second time bonus loss on stage 18.
In face he only gained time on his rival on one day throughout the entire Tour. He finished second on stage 19, gaining two seconds in bonuses.
It’s demoralizing to concede chunks of time on those three key days. But, on a better note, he was otherwise very close to Pogačar, with the latter’s explosiveness what enabled him to make small gains here and there.
The improvement in Vingegaard’s level since the 2024, and indeed the 2025 Dauphiné, has got to be encouraging. Those three bad days aside, he’s getting closer and closer to his rival.
So, even if he didn’t take the yellow jersey this time around, can he take satisfaction from the greater performance levels he reached on those good days?
“Yeah, I can agree to that,” he said.
Victory in the Vuelta?
Could Vingegaard bounce back in the Vuelta? Don’t rule it out. (Photo: Gruber Images)
One year ago, Vingegaard also took second overall in the Tour, but was 6:17 back. He was 4:24 behind this time. Time trials aside, he was much closer than 2024 in the mountains and punchy stages.
There is a sense the differences are narrowing. Other than stage 12, Pogačar’s biggest time gap in the mountains was just nine seconds.
Given the concussion he suffered in Paris-Nice, given his disrupted preparation and, given his relative freshness compared to the all-out approach Pogačar has taken since the start of the season, there is a very strong argument that the Vuelta a España would be a lot more competitive between them.
That’s if Pogačar is even there. The Slovenian said earlier in the Tour that all things going to plan, he would be lining out in Spain.
He has been a lot more non-committal in recent days, and said on Sunday he will take a week or so before he makes a decision.
Pogačar’s indecision about that race may be down to fatigue. But it could also be due to a niggling doubt about his prospects.
The sense of clear invincibility he had prior the Tour is gone.
That may be an unusual statement. He did win overall, after all, and take four stages. But there were days he put in all out attacks and couldn’t shake Vingegaard.
Many spoke about him as being unbeatable, but the past week has shown that he is human, and he is tiring.
As for Vingegaard, the Dane sounds all but certain to be at the big Spanish event. Second overall behind Sepp Kuss two years ago — in a race where he visibly backed off to ensure his teammate won — he already has Vuelta on his mind.
“First I will do about a week, more or less easy, and then from there you can start training again,” he said, when asked how he would prepare for that event. “It is more when you feel fresh and able to train again, to be honest.
“And then from there it is basically two and half week of training. Then Vuelta is coming already. There is not a lot of time, but I did it already two years ago and for me back then, it worked out pretty well. Hopefully again this year.”
Italian ambition
Vingegaard could be heading to the Giro next year. (Photo: Bernard Papon / AFP via Getty Images)
Vingegaard is 28 years of age and has more good years ahead of him in the peloton. The Tour didn’t go the way he had hoped, but he was still upbeat in recent days, including at the finish.
The sense of despair that was evident after the Hautacam stage is gone. He accepted Pogačar was the strongest rider this year, but wasn’t losing sleep over it.
He will go away, work hard, and will use the narrowing gap on many stages of this year’s race as an encouragement.
He is also open to not focusing his whole season on the Tour. Asked if he might consider other races too, he left the door open to that.
“I’ve always said that I would also like to do the Giro once,” he said. “I am not sitting here and saying that I will do the Giro next year, but it is something we need to discuss with the team, what our goals would be next year.
“As I said, I always wanted to do it as well. So we will just have to make our plans for next year and see what that will be.”
If he does, he may well consider Pogačar’s 2024 season. The Slovenian won the Giro, then reached an even higher level again in the Tour.
Could taking the maglia rosa give Vingegaard the platform to return to Tour yellow again?
It’s not impossible. His performances in the upcoming Vuelta a España may help make that decision, particularly if he can build on his Tour level in that race.