Is this or not the income of Tadej Pogacar certain to Tour de France? This is the big question to score on rest day this monday, the second and last of the race. Because yesterday the Slovenian made a very hard blow to his rivals in the general classification and, above all, on a moral level, but there will be no mistake in the third and last week of competition to determine the winner of the Tour.
Despite 3’09” of Pogacar income, there is still ground for their rivals to try to reverse the situation. The final week of the Tour begins tomorrow with a flat stage of 188.6 kilometers between Gruissan and Nîmes, a day marked for the sprint finish. This is the last chance for the sprinters to leave their mark on the race and, almost, the only a priori quiet day left for the candidates to get the final victory.
From Wednesday no mistake is worth it. The day before, which was 177.8 kilometers between Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux and Superdévoluy, seemed conducive to a breakaway, but it was necessary to see if the peloton maintained the very difficult rhythm in which it rode throughout the race . In the last forty kilometers there will be a second climb (Bayard), a first climb (Noyer) and a high finish on the third climb (Superdévoluy) that can surprise anyone who arrives with low energy.
Very hard party ending
The stage of Thursday, 179.5 kilometers between Gap and Barcelonnette, but beyond that there are five third-class ports that will cause damage in the last days. Especially, before the nineteenth episode of fridaywith 144.6 kilometers between Embrun and the high finish at Isola 2000.
Three grueling climbs in the Alps await them. The first two, of a special category in Vars (18.8 kilometers at 5.7%) and at Bonnette (very long 22.9 kilometers at 6.9%). In conclusion, the finale will arrive at the top of the station. Island 2000, with 16.1 kilometers at 7.1%. Far from the lowering level, Saturdaythe penultimate stage will offer 132.8 kilometers between Nice and the Col de la Couillole, with one second start (Braus, 10 km at 6.6%) and first three (Turin, 20.7 km at 5.7%; Colmiane, 7.5 km at 7.1% and the high end at La Couillole15.7 km at 7.1%).
Many battles are expected of them because The final time trial between Monaco and Nice will close the Tour, in length, with 33.7 kilometers. This may be a priori desirable for Vingegaard, but in order to do so the Dane must try to reduce the Pogacar rents on the remaining mountainous land. Everything can change, but Tadej claimed the Tour de France stripes in a big way
General classification of the Tour de France after the 15th stage
1. Tadej Pogacar (Slovenia/UAE Emirates) 61j 56’24”
2. Jonas Vingegaard (Denmark/Visma-Lease a Bike) at 3’09”
3. Remco Evenepoel (Belgium/Soudal Quick-Step) at 5’19”
4. Joao Almeida (Portugal/UAE Emirates) in 10’54”
5. Mikel Landa (Spain/Soudal Quick-Step) in 11’21”
6. Carlos Rodríguez (Spain/Ineos Grenadiers) in 11’27”
7. Adam Yates (Great Britain/UAE Emirates) in 13’38”
8. Giulio Ciccone (Italy/Lidl-Trek) in 15’48”
9. Derek Gee (Canada/Israel-Premier Tech) at 16’12”
10. Santiago Buitrago (Colombia/Bahrain Victorious) at 16’32”
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
