"A great example of how the Tour can get ugly even when the wind isn't blowing too hard" - Tadej Pogacar survives echelon scare on stage 6 at Tour de France

Although on paper, the almost pancake flat stage 6 of the 2024 Tour de France was supposed to be a calm day for the Maillot Jaune contenders, a little bit of wind saw Tadej Pogacar isolated momentarily in a worrying moment of weakness for UAE Team Emirates.

As the wind picked up, Team Visma | Lease a Bike took to the front with just over 80km to go, setting a fierce pace and causing splits behind them. Alongside Pogacar in the lead group, there was a notable lack of UAE Team Emirates riders, with the Maillot Jaune all alone at the front. Although there was real panic for a moment, as the wind settled things did eventually come back together with 70km to go, with UAE Team Emirates able to breathe a sigh of relief.

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"Today was a great example of how the Tour can get ugly even when the wind isn't blowing too hard. It was a rather stressful day," reflected a relieved Pogacar in his post-stage interview afterwards. "At the end of the day, I was happy the stage wasn't too long."

With the momentary panic survived, Pogacar now casts his eye on the stage 7 individual time-trial that could have potentially massive general classification ramifications. "I already recced the time trial a long time ago. I must say I love this course, it's a fantastic time trial. It'll be fast, but aerodynamics alone won't cut it, you need some oomph too," the UAE Team Emirates leader assesses of the upcoming challenge. "It'll be interesting to see how it plays out. I see Remco as the clear favourite. He's the world champion and has shown time and again that he can beat anyone he likes. He'll be the man to beat tomorrow, but I think I can do well too. Of course, he's a serious contender for GC. I think he's had this goal in mind since December."

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