“Mathieu, if you’re hearing this: you’re causing stress in my dreams" - Tadej Pogacar on how van der Poel visited his dreams during Tour de France
CyclingThursday, 30 July 2026 at 14:36
Tadej Pogacar has become accustomed to the figure of Mathieu van der Poel lurking in his shadows in the classics, but a dream during the Tour de France almost served as a warning for what was to come later in the race.
The Dutchman and Pogacar have entertained as the greatest of rivals in classics such as Milano-Sanremo, Tour of Flanders and Paris Roubaix over recent seasons, with the two often leaving the rest behind on climbs and extending that gap over fast-and-furious descents and relentless efforts across all terrain.
Sunday's Tour finale in Paris was no different as the pair renewed hostilities. however, it was not the first time in the race for Pogacar to be in competition with van der Poel - in the mental sense at least.
In a behind-the-scenes video released by UAE Team Emirates-XRG, Pogacar told his teammates that he had a visit from van der Poel in his Tour dreams. In the dream, the pair were pushing the limits of a descent before Pogacar dreamt he crashed.
“I dreamed I was riding at the front with Van der Poel and that we went into a descent like crazy. A crazy downhill,” Pogacar said.
Tadej Pogacar, star of UAE Team Emirates XRG.
Pogacar's 'crazy' dream about van der Poel
“I dreamed that we were riding our bikes along the guardrails—the barriers that stop cars from going off the road. Then I suddenly hit the guardrail. It was crazy.”
The heart-racing moment as he slept had a physical impact on him, as he checked his Whoop monitoring device, with the metric that measured the level of stress in his body signalling that it had increased as a result. In a light-hearted quip to the camera at the end of the story, Pogacar sent a message to his rival.
“Then I checked my Whoop stress and it was extremely high. It must have been because of that downhill dream.
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Pogacar's stress spikes
“My stress is always very low at the beginning and in the middle of the night, but when I start dreaming in the morning, my stress goes through the roof.
He added: “Mathieu, if you’re hearing this: you’re causing stress in my dreams.”
Pogacar's nocturnal preparation for doing battle with van der Poel didn't pay dividends on the Champs-Elysees as van der Poel's last-gasp burst shook off the yellow jersey.
After breaking clear together on the Montmartre climb, their effort to hold off the sprinters proved too much for Pogacar in the sprint to the line as van der Poel held for victory in a photo finish ahead of Jasper Philipsen.
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- And how are you going to stop him, or how are his boys going to know? They don’t have a clue what they’re swallowing these days, the team takes care of each riders’ recipe and Mauro had good contacts and has had plenty of time and guinea pigs to tweak things. AND do you understand the techniques (however subtle, or not) used to rope people into omertas?Jumpyjohn30-07-2026
- BS, MG has been criticised since 20y and was supposed to be excluded. Also, despite largely agreeing, one of France TV’s channels has been the only large media entity to delve back in deeper details of MG pre Duval-Saunier, but as implied here, nobody really wants to know (and certainly no-one wants to pay a serious journalist to do investigations), not the cycling world, not the media. What is not said by omission is what matters, maybe he didn’t take EPO (at one point he complained everyone else was way better than him, then the tables turned, suddenly at careers’ end like one of our prolific US commentators) he took something else. He claimed he suffered from an allergy, yes, an « allergy » to what he took. I could list a dozen simple questions someone should dare to ask that will blow up his « victim » argument, even to the least instructed fan.Jumpyjohn30-07-2026
- None of these doping conversations would be taking place if Pogi didn't exist. Ad acta!!!PogiSloFans30-07-2026
- Chapeau - Lenny was always there when it mattered, even coming back after being gapped on mountain stages.Crashjames30-07-2026
- Just LOL at this guy. Jonas was lucky to win the two that he did. The first time he had peak Roglic, peak WVA and a naive Pog to help; the second time Pog's preparation was derailed by his LBL crash. In truth Pog should have seven Tours by now.Renz30-07-2026
- Gianetti can dope as much as he wants cause he’s not racing. Just don’t corrupt the riders including the GOAT.
PogiFan2Day30-07-2026 - I wonder if Gianetti's past will catch up with him...
leedorney30-07-2026 - and you as well.OCexile30-07-2026
- This is a load of crap. Pogi's engine is much better than Jonas. No amount of fire in Jonas can make his engine go better. I have not heard That VO2 max number change due to fire in the eyes. It requires Pogi to make an error in preparation or race for Jonas to get there.abstractengineer30-07-2026
- that is incorrect even now Carapaz who was racing at Froome's time and winning finished top5 TDF. So Froome would be challenging for Podium. Pogi Jonas are extreme outliersabstractengineer30-07-2026
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