"I would bet on Vingegaard rather than Pogacar for the Tour this year" - Storer makes intriguing argument for Dane to win Tour de France

Michael Storer is betting on Jonas Vingegaard this summer, and thinks that he could upset Tadej Pogacar and win the 2026 Tour de France. After riding the Giro d'Itlaia with the Dane, Storer is convinced that he can move up a gear and rival the Slovenian next month.

Pogacar and Vingegaard have been eternal enemies since their 2022 duel, finishing first and second place between them for the last four editions. Both have won two crowns each during that time - but it's Pogacar who has dominated the past years and is favourite to once again take victory.

However, in a change of approach, Vingegaard took on the Giro. opting for a Grand Tour before the Tour de France, the Visma | Lease a Bike leader obliterated the general classification field and swept up five stages along the way - all while seemingly holding something back and eying the Tour.

Storer believes he's in 'red hot' form and thinks fans will see an even further improved Vingegaard at the Barcelona Grand Depart as he gave his controversial pick.

“He’s in some red hot form, in my opinion,” Storer told the Domestique Hotseat Podcast. “I think he’s going to be even better at the Tour than he was at the Giro."

“I think he even said in an interview that he is usually better in the second Grand Tour than the first. He’s also had a pretty clean run. So I would bet on Vingegaard rather than Pogacar for the Tour this year. I’ll just put it out there.”

Vingegaard was criticised early in the Giro for not taking command of the race, but silenced those doubts with a decisive second half to the race. With five victories, the Dane wasn't dropped by a GC rider on any occasion. Storer finished in seventh place overall, but notably found himself over ten minutes behind.

“It’s not fair to say that he wasn’t riding aggressively. He just didn’t need to make a big attack. He could drop us while staying seated. It’s a lot less spectacular, but the time gaps he was putting into us showed how strong he was.”

He added: “I was doing better than in previous years at the Giro and I was still getting quite big time gaps from Vingegaard. So I would say he can beat Pogačar this year at the Tour.”

With such a gulf between overall contenders and the likes of Pogacar and Vingegaard, Storer noted that they're a step ahead as he applauded the riders.

“I think the response is just to sit back and applaud them, because I always do the best I can. Sometimes that has brought me really top results, sometimes good results and sometimes nothing.

"But the main thing is trying to do the best I can so I can be proud of my result, whatever the outcome. These top riders are just a step ahead of everyone else. At the Giro, the real race was for second place. It is quite similar when Pogačar is dominating.”