"If I was racing without him, it wouldn't be the same" - Jonas Vingegaard admits he cherishes Tadej Pogacar rivalry

At the 2025 Tour de France, chapter five of the historic and storied Maillot Jaune rivalry between Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar is set to take place. Whilst there is genuine rivalry on the road, away from the fire of competition, there is also a lot of mutual respect between the two Grand Tour titans.

Speaking ahead of the upcoming edition of the Tour, Vingegaard clarified his relationship with Pogacar. "If I was racing without him, it wouldn't be the same," admits the Team Visma | Lease a Bike leader in quotes collected by TNT Sports, explaining how being up against someone as good as the current world champion actually makes things more fun for Vingegaard. "It could be kind of boring if you just won every mountain stage by two minutes. So I actually enjoy having a rival like him."

Pogacar might have got the better of Vingegaard last year, but the Dane is clearly not lacking in any self belief this time around. "With all I went through, to be able to take that stage win [on Stage 11 of the 2024 Tour de France] was really incredible," reflects the 28-year-old fondly. "Last year, going into the Tour, I was still kind of believing that I could go for the win. Obviously that didn't work out. This year I feel like a completely different person - ​​how my body reacts to training, but also how my body is in general."

With preparation having gone well, there is now a genuine excitement within the Vingegaard camp as he looks to reclaim control of the most iconic jersey in the sport of cycling. "I've always enjoyed the whole process of getting to the highest possible level for the Tour de France," he says. "It's always the big goal, and I always enjoy doing the hard work here [in training camp]. Everybody's taking a step [forward] at the moment, so obviously I also need to be better than I was two years ago."