Jonas Vingegaard remains unbothered by Tadej Pogačar’s win of the stage 17, on 20 July, Wednesday. The stage was set out at Col du Val Louron-Azet. Vingegaard did not even show an ounce of anxiety as his opponent took his place on the winner’s podium.
Even though, UAE Team Emirates lost its key players, Rafal Majka and Marc Soler, the team displayed such an astounding effort that they left no room for Vingegaard’s team to overcome them.
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While closing in on the finish line, the yellow jersey was left alone to defend itself against Pogacar. His most reliable wingman, Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) was at least at a distance of 4 km from the leader. Even though Vingegaard was secluded in his fight with Pogacar, he came off as unbothered by it.
Maybe it was because Vingegaard stuck to his core strategey, which is, to tail every attack made by Pogacar. It seems like Pogacar is not going to be able to shake off Vingegaard any time soon.
While talking about his performance at stage 17th, Vingegaard said:
It’s clear that in the finale, I was without a teammate and that wasn’t ideal, but all I had to do was follow Tadej. I wasn’t worried at any point
He came off rather unruffled as he said:
Of course, it takes energy, but you have to be ready because you never know when Tadej will attack. He often attacks when you don’t expect it. That was the case today, and it will be again tomorrow
With just 4 days left to the grand finale in Paris, Vingegaard manages to remain the leader of the tour.
Speaking of the upcoming stages, he expressed their importance:
I remember watching the stage when I was really young, But tomorrow it’s not only the Aubisque, there’s also Hautacam where Bjarne Riis, I think, won the stage. So I guess for Danish cycling, they are quite some important climbs.
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If Vingegaard manages to grab a win at Aubisque and Hautacam, he will join the ranks of Riis in the hall of fame. Even though Riis confessed to dopping prior to the race, so he could win it, his name still remains in the scribbled in the books of honour.
Also Read: Tadej Pogačar Claims Stage 17, Vingegaard Follows Second
Featured Image Via YouTube/ Velon
