“I did get a gap but then he turned the tables" - Jonas Vingegaard admits key error in defeat by Tadej Pogacar on Tour de France stage 7

Not for the first time this Tour de France, Jonas Vingegaard had to settle for just being able to follow Tadej Pogacar on stage 7. The Dane was the only rider able to do so as Pogacar stormed to victory atop the Mur-de-Bretagne, but once again proved unable to make any impactful differences of his own against his long-time rival.

“Normally I’d say I don’t stand a chance in a sprint like that. But I actually felt like I was pretty close today," the Team Visma | Lease a Bike leader reflected in a post-stage interview at the finish line with Danish broadcaster TV2, admitting one key tactical error that may have played a part in denying him the stage win.

"I made a mistake at the end. The plan was to try and surprise him — open up a small gap and catch him off guard. I did get a gap, but then he turned the tables and surprised me,” Vingegaard explained ruefully. "I was just about to launch my sprint, but he beat me to it."

Given the kind of form Pogacar has been in so far this Tour de France however, Vingegaard admits that even if he'd played his tactic to perfection, that was no guarantee of getting the best of his Slovenian nemesis. "It’s hard to say whether it would’ve made a difference — I don’t really think it would have. He’s just incredibly fast in a sprint," the Dane concludes. "But it’s one of those moments where I could have done something differently.”