“Following him was mission impossible” – Remco Evenepoel concedes Tadej Pogacar superiority but strengthens Tour de France podium grip
CyclingFriday, 24 July 2026 at 19:00
Remco Evenepoel strengthened his hold on second place at the Tour de France after distancing both Isaac del Toro and Paul Seixas on Alpe d’Huez, even if Tadej Pogacar once again proved completely beyond reach.
The Belgian gained 12 seconds on Del Toro and 16 on Seixas at the summit, extending his advantage over third place to 2:31 with one final mountain stage remaining. Pogacar, meanwhile, attacked more than 12 kilometres from the finish and completed a historic victory in the yellow jersey.
“I felt good,” Evenepoel told VTM Nieuws after the stage. “It was fairly predictable that Tadej would produce something crazy and try to win today. There was a strong chance he would go all-in, and that is what he did. Everything went well for me. Following him was mission impossible.”
Pogacar’s acceleration left Evenepoel to focus on the battle behind. Decathlon CMA CGM Team had taken control through Maxim Van Gils, whose pace dropped Tom Pidcock and Juan Ayuso on the lower slopes of Alpe d’Huez, but the Belgian remained comfortable alongside Del Toro, Seixas and Mattias Skjelmose.
Evenepoel forced to launch his attack twice
“After that, I followed the pace set by Decathlon CMA CGM Team,” Evenepoel said. “I was genuinely comfortable there. It was not going super-fast.”
That prompted him to make his move with around five kilometres remaining. The first acceleration did not develop as planned, with the crowds and motorbikes restricting the available space as the race passed through the most densely packed section of the climb.
“That is why I decided to attack with five kilometres to go,” he explained. “But it happened in two parts because I was blocked by the fans and the motorbikes. That was a shame.
“Had I been able to make the attack in one go, I think the result would have been different. With so many people, though, it was predictable that something might go slightly wrong somewhere.”
Evenepoel regrouped and attacked again, this time opening a gap over Del Toro and Seixas. He believed the interruption had prevented him from taking a more substantial amount of time, but the move still strengthened his position ahead of the final mountain stage.
“It was unfortunate that it happened to me, but ultimately I have to be satisfied,” he said. “I gained around ten seconds. I showed that I was better than the others fighting for the podium. I came through the day well.”
Final mountain stage should suit Evenepoel better
Evenepoel now sits 7:11 behind Pogacar, with Del Toro third at 9:42 and Seixas another 24 seconds further back. Lenny Martinez has moved into fifth, but remains 5:49 behind the Belgian.
Second place is not yet secure, and Evenepoel was unwilling to treat the final mountain stage as a formality. He nevertheless left Alpe d’Huez encouraged by both his own condition and the strength of Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe around him.
“Of course it can still go wrong. A lot can always happen,” he said. “But the feeling is good, the legs are good and my teammates are good. Overall, we are very satisfied.”
The longer, less explosive nature of stage 20 should offer a different test from Alpe d’Huez, where the steep accelerations and crowded roadside shaped the decisive kilometres.
“Tomorrow we go full gas one more time. We are feeling confident,” Evenepoel said. “Tomorrow is a different stage: less explosive and longer. That should suit me better. I am really looking forward to it.”
Evenepoel had one final complaint after the finish, although it concerned the volume of the crowd rather than his legs. “My right ear is still ringing, by the way,” he said. “But it was a beautiful experience.”
The time gained was modest, but it moved Evenepoel another step closer to securing second place in Paris.
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.
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- Pogi has once again proved all the doubters wrong, showing that some fools have no clue about cycling. Pogi single-handedly chased down the breakaway over 12 km, and those riders were no amateurs, they were the elite of mountain climbers. Carapaz, Lenny Martinez, and Kuss had a three-and-a-half-minute lead at the start of the climb, yet Pogi caught and beat them all on his own, without any help from his team, in truly epic fashion. It's proof that in cycling, it's always the legs that decide the outcome, not just team support. And in Stage 15, he could easily have won as well if he'd wanted to, but instead he chose to gift the victory to Remco, which only makes him even greater than he already is. Pogi is one of a kind. The greatest cyclist of all time and the greatest Slovenian athlete of all time. No one comes close to him. We should all be happy to have him. We're living through a cycling fairy tale that will probably never happen again. Tomorrow Pogi will once again be racing for Del Toro, for the white jersey and 3rd place.mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales24-07-2026
- Yes, I think Tadej would like Del Toro to take the white jersey and hold his podium position. I'm sure the team want it as well. Tomorrow is a incredibly hard stage. If Seixas has a great day he can be on the podium, I never thought I would say this, but honestly, a top five would be an incredible result for him at his age.awp24-07-2026
- Tomorrow, I expect a refined version if the stage 15 tactics - riding as a domestíque for del Toro, but late on riding for himself to drop Remco who is obviously stronger than del Toro
Rafionain-Glas24-07-2026 - Tomorrow, I suspect more babysitting Del Toro duty for Pogacar to make sure he stays third and neutralize any attacks from Seixas.
PogiFan2Day24-07-2026 - Of course CO is a poison. Just saying it won't kill you in small doses, therefore it's not a poison makes no sense. That is true of every poison.mobk24-07-2026
- Tomorrow Tadej follows wheels until they get close and then he'll make a decision. He has to be thinking about his Vuelta participation.awp24-07-2026
- In awe with that performance. I was in the middle of a workout and it made me pause just to watch the final few KM. Chapeau Tadej, amongst the rumours surrounding the blacks shorts, ill teammates, early doping tests, you proved your dominance still. You can’t not respect that.anonymouscyclist24-07-2026
- No, Jakob is entirely correct to classify CO as a poisonous gas, as it is intrinsically highly toxic. Its dosage doesn’t make it ‘less’ poisonous. In fact, this danger is precisely why teams are not allowed to use the Detalo Performance rebreathing machine without direct, in-person supervision. Because CO binds tightly to haemoglobin and leaves the body extremely slowly, without the correct, monitored and supervised dosage, it can build up overtime and suffocate you. It does not become ‘non-poisonous’ at low levels, it simply has a cumulative effect. CO is poisonous because, upon inhalation, it binds to the haemoglobin 200-300 times more strongly than oxygen. Haemoglobin carries oxygen to your body, and consequently, a sudden high dosage, or repeating low dosages, cause suffocation. You can’t compare it to CO2 either, it does not bind to haemoglobin anywhere close to the rate at which CO does. CO2 is only dangerous in massive, enclosed concentrations by physically displacing the oxygen in the air and suffocating you by physically preventing you from breathing oxygen. And let’s not get started on carbon monoxide inhalation.anonymouscyclist24-07-2026
- Good lord what a performance, meaning Martinez and Carapaz, after all their idiotic start-stop attacking. Speechless about and in awe of the dominant ride by Pogačar, so I have nothing more to say about him right now.RidesHills24-07-2026
- Really? What if this was actually a warning that they know something is going on and will be taking a closer look in future. Controls had been pretty lax the last decade and never found much, we may be entering a new round of catch up. This kind of stuff would only be available to the best off teams, it’s not something you can just order on the internet with a big black wallet..Mistermaumau24-07-2026
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