David Gaudu gaining confidence as he enters top 10 of Tour de France GC: "I felt good, so that's a good sign"
Cycling
The biggest French hope at this year's Tour de France, there is arguably more pressure on David Gaudu than any other rider in the race. After the first mountain stage, Gaudu has entered the top 10 and is growing in confidence.
"In the group of favourites, I fall 3rd behind Vingegaard and Pogacar. The team did a great job all day and I felt good, so that's a good sign," said the Groupama - FDJ leader in a post-stage interview following stage 5. "The Tour is still very, very long, it was only the first mountain stage. We haven't reached the summit yet. You have to stay focused. The team is doing a great job so far, so we have to continue."
As the race took on the Pyrenees early on Gaudu impressed, looking solid and finishing 9th. "I managed my climb, well, I don't know if you can call it management given how hard it was... Anyway, I did my best on the climb, and at the top, we were no longer many, only five or six riders," he assesses. "It's good for the head, but as I said, you have to stay focused, lucid and humble because you know that the Tour can go fast in all directions. Just a big thank you to the team."
With Jonas Vingegaard putting time into all his rivals except the stage winner and new Maillot Jaune, Jai Hindley, Gaudu had a front row seat to see the reaction of Tadej Pogacar. "We saw it last year, once we angered the beast, he is revengeful. So he will not let it go like that," says the Frenchman. "We know what Pogacar is capable of, Jumbo has landed the first blow, but it may be Pogacar who will try to answer."
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
Loading
▪️ Valentin Madouas à l'avant, David Gaudu au rendez-vous ▪️ Philippe Mauduit : "Une équipe concernée, ils ont tous fait le job" ▪️ David Gaudu : "Ce n’était que la première étape de montagne"
Write a comment