“He is a gift for all of us and for cycling”: Mauro Gianetti marvels at Tadej Pogacar's historic dominance as UAE Team Emirates sweeps stage 14
CyclingSunday, 19 July 2026 at 01:00
Tadej Pogacar tightened his grip on the 2026 Tour de France with a commanding fourth stage victory on stage 14, extending his overall lead once again. UAE Team Emirates - XRG manager Mauro Gianetti hailed both his superstar leader and the team's collective performance.
Gianetti praises Pogacar and UAE's teamwork
Pogacar's latest victory came after another dominant display from UAE Team Emirates-XRG, whose riders controlled the race before the Slovenian finished the job on the final climb.
“It’s impressive,” Gianetti told WielerFlits. “The team worked really hard. When you see everything they did, they really deserve it.”
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The Swiss manager singled out several domestiques for their efforts. “Especially Nils Politt, Felix Großschartner and Tim Wellens did a fantastic job. Pogacar finished it off with a great show. He takes more time and another stage win. We’re also extremely happy to see Isaac Del Toro finish in second place.”
Unlike previous mountain stages, UAE did not shoulder all of the workload alone, as Visma-Lease a Bike and Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale both took responsibility at different moments of the race.
“It’s different this year with different rivals,” Gianetti explained. “You don’t only have Jonas Vingegaard, who rode a fantastic pace on the climb - he’s a great champion - but also Paul Seixas, Juan Ayuso and Florian Lipowitz. That makes it a different Tour with different tactics.”
Del Toro remains focused on helping Pogacar
Despite the increased pressure from rival teams, Pogacar never looked under serious threat on the final ascent. Gianetti believes cycling fans are witnessing one of the sport's all-time greats.
“He is an incredible talent, truly a gift to the sport,” he said. “Sometimes I think back to when I watched Eddy Merckx win races. In a few years, people will say: ‘I was there.’ He is a gift for all of us and for cycling.”
Another major positive for UAE was Isaac Del Toro's second-place finish, which lifted the young Mexican to seventh overall. Even so, Gianetti made it clear that Del Toro's priority remains supporting Pogacar.
“The goal is to win the Tour,” Gianetti said. “He is where he is in the general classification and can ride his own race until the moment comes when he has to support Tadej. We have a very clear objective. He rode a fantastic stage, but the goal is to help Tadej. By being in the position he is now, he is already providing a great service to the team.”
Félix SernaCycling Journalist
Félix Serna is a writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2025. He covers professional cycling across both the men’s and women’s calendars, with a focus on UCI rankings, race developments, and rider performance. His work includes interview-based reports, liveblogs, and tournament coverage designed to provide clear, accurate context throughout the season.
In his reporting, Félix regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical reference. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available. He holds a bachelor’s degree in International Studies.
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- they should test more. we've all seen this movie before and it ends badly. tour just finished it's fastest stage ever but yeah, "it's because of nutrition" lol. anyone who complains should get tested twice the following night.whkman19-07-2026
- There will be no suspicion if JV and Pogacar do bad today because the testing will prove they are not doping. The only reason why they would not perform today is because of the fact that their sleep was disrupted. It’s a clear indication that UCI is interfering in the competition
PogiFan2Day19-07-2026 - Disrupting their rest before a grueling stage right after they had a grueling stage. Nice way to show others that you are not bias. Even if you're not bias, it is hard to shake off the suspicion if both of them suffer and lose time today. Good job, organiser! 4 hours of sleep before a hard stage. I won't be surprised if Tadej gets dropped today.
KerisVroom19-07-2026 - If the French "Inglourious Basterds" did what they did, it would only be fair if, at the same time on the same night, they woke all of the cyclists in the top ten. If it is truly necessary to disrupt cyclists' sleep and recovery in this way before the toughest day, then everyone should be treated equally, amongst them Seixas. Ad acta!!!mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales19-07-2026
- Spot in helping Sexias .French testers lolpaultryan200219-07-2026
- The only reason I can imagine is that UCI had some suspicions regarding micro-dosing so the only way would be to make a night test. However, they could wake up both riders at same time (use two teams of doctors) and/or they could test TOP5 of current classification. Unless someone is trying to help Seixas...averagecyclist19-07-2026
- "I would say to Jonas and Tadej: wake those guys up at two o’clock in the morning for a change. Then they’ll feel what they are doing to us. It is certainly not respectful.” Excellent idea! Only problem is, you have to wake up at 2 anyway
Rafionain-Glas19-07-2026 - The French nickname for Tadej Pogačar: Lance Armstrong II. ... Shame on them!!!mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales19-07-2026
- Bet the testing staff were French lol. Sexias did not get a visit .paultryan200219-07-2026
- This is the abuse of the discretion provided by the regulations, which establish a 12-hour time frame. An athlete has the right to rest. Testing should be avoided between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. This is utter French BS. Believe me, they don't knock on the doors of basketball players, footballers, or track and field athletes at 2:00 a.m. to test them. First the booing... second the waking up of Pogi and Vinnie... what's coming next? French haters spitting... throwing urine at Pogi and Jonas, pushing them off the bike etc. etc.???mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales19-07-2026
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