"It is almost impossible to ride away from Jonas" - Tadej Pogacar tries but fails to cut race lead

Stage 14 of the Tour de France presented another opportunity for the GC battle to unfold, and it did on the slopes of the Côte de la Croix Neuve as Tadej Pogacar tried to cut the difference to race leader Jonas Vingegaard, however again not managing to.

Pogacar told NOS after the stage: “Wout van Aert tried to go along in the breakaway and I jumped in the wheel. We had quite a big hole. There were a lot of riders in the front to get into the break. I tried to jump in to anger the boys behind us," he said. The stage was certain for a breakaway to succeed and the hilly start saw the Slovenian trying to surprise.

A set of accelerations on the first climb of the day saw Vingegaard under pressure, as Jumbo-Visma crumbled, not expecting the move. However the yellow jersey kept his cool and managed to bridge across to Pogacar, and control his attacks until the race settled down later on. The battle was to be repeated late in the day however, as the two went head to head in the final climb.

"It is almost impossible to ride away from Jonas, but nothing is impossible, today was a short, steep climb," he decribed. Pogacar set a number of small accelerations which tried to crack the Dane, however the scenario was similar as to Alpe d'Huez where he was perfectly matched.

"I think I can try it more often in the Pyrenees, where the mountains are more open," he concluded. Tomorrow stage's into Carcassonne will however be a day of survival, with the gruelling heat and strong winds to play a part in the day's outcome.