Martin Lange (special correspondent for the Tour de France) / Photo credit: Thomas SAMSON / AFP
After the terrible Puy-de-Dôme stage on Sunday, the Tour de France riders have a rest day on Monday. In the meantime, the gap is closing between the yellow jersey Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar, just behind at 17 seconds. The French David Gaudu and Romain Bardet will have to fight to reach the podium.
It’s a rest day this Monday for the riders of the Tour de France, after the terrible stage of Puy-de-Dôme. Victory at the top of the Canadian Michael Woods, Jonas Vingegaard remains in the yellow jersey but Tadej Pogacar, his runner-up in the general classification, continues to nibble away tirelessly.
“Everything will be very important on this Tour”
17 seconds is what separates Vingegaard and Pogacar this morning. The third overall, Jai Hindley, has already been pushed back more than 2 minutes 30 minutes. As expected, the Tour will be decided between the two ogres of the peloton. And on Sunday, it was the Slovenian Pogacar who regained precious seconds on the slopes of Puy-de-Dôme. “The difference between the two is really small and we took a few seconds. Morally and also mathematically, everything will be very important on this Tour”, notes Mauro Gianetti, manager of Pogacar.
A Tour which is still very long: twelve stages, traps and above all the Alps which will arrive very quickly from the end of the week. On the side of the yellow jersey, Vingegaard, we hope for a rise in power. “Tadej was stronger at the end. He deserved to take back these few seconds”, recognizes Jonas Vingegaard. “I just have to keep fighting to keep the yellow jersey until Paris. I think I haven’t had my best days yet. Maybe the rest day will do me good”.
It could also perk up the Frenchmen David Gaudu and Romain Bardet, who again lost time on Sunday and who will have to show panache to join in the fight for the podium.