"Pogi is on another level, but..." - Mathias Vacek's heavyweight build not enough to stop Tour de Suisse podium in the high mountains
Cycling
Mathias Vacek has reached his best form, just in time for the Tour de France. The Lidl-Trek has virtually secured his presence through a performance at the Tour de Suisse that saw him finish on the final podium, despite weighting 75Kg and ending in a brutal mountain stage.
“If somebody would have told me that I would be fighting with the climbers here, I would not have believed it," Vacek shared in a press release. Vacek has reached the end of the race in third place, joining Tadej Pogacar and Richard Carapz on the final podium of the race.
The Czech rider has shown tremendous amounts of quality over the past couple of years, however his talent has been shown more in the classics and time trials. But like few before him, he is a true all-rounder, specializing in that terrain, but holding his own very well in the mountains.
On stage 1 he was one of the strongest on the hilly terrain but few would've expected that on stage 2, he would be the only one able to follow Tadej Pogacar on the final sequence of ascents. Vacek showed his true level there, and gained time on his direct rivals in the fight for the overall classification.
Mathias Vacek at the 2026 Tour de Suisse
Pogacar is on another level but Vacek is close to the rest
In the race's time trial his performance wasn't as sharp as some would've hoped for, but he climbed onto the race's podium. Against many climbers, on stage 5 he remained there. Although he lost 2:16 minutes to Pogacar on Villars-sur-Ollon, he lost only a mere 23 seconds to the 'best of the rest' Jarno Widar who led the rest of the peloton figures in.
"Okay, Pogi is on another level, but Carapaz and these guys are proper mountain goats. So it’s amazing". Vacek has effectively net one of the best results of his career, in a race where at the start he did not feature amongst the expected GC contenders.
He was planned to race the Tour de France, often termed Mads Pedersen's right-hand man, however with his current form there would be no logic in leaving him home. After Quinn Simmons' victory at the USA national championships this weekend, the team can count on two of its brightest all-rounders to support the other leaders and also chase stage wins.
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Another step for Vacek
“I’m so happy that I could do it. It’s one of the biggest successes of my career and I couldn’t be happier with my own performance and with the team support and everything. Really, really good," he assures.
He has shown his best form just at the right time this year, and next weekend at the national championships he should be the undeniable favourite in his home nation. “I did another step in my performance and all the work paid off. That’s great. I am super happy and looking forward to the next races," he concluded.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- as we all like the david-style rebels, he will leave a gap.Ketterechts12-11-2026
- Oy, don't insult girlsHills3312-11-2026
- lol yeah. this is a good onemij12-11-2026
- Mads is the best: I didn’t even know there were rules in cyclocross. I just thought it was a matter of: ‘Go, three, two, one, ride.’ It’s like a street fight, a kind of underground brawl. It’s the MMA of cycling he gives the best quotes.mij12-11-2026
- he's too young. he's 23, so not really a fair call yet.mij12-11-2026
- and don't forget Pidcock's departure. maybe he will never win a GT, but he knows how to light up a race.mij12-11-2026
- Bingo...I was going to say a 12 year obsessed Pogi fan girlie ! Like she's chasing a teen boy band! All glossy eyed about tadej!frieders312-11-2026
- That stint in the Pink was so good. If memory serves he struggled with the champagne cuz he'd never been on the podium before. I feel like it gave him some self-belief, and yeah - then the move to Visma to be one of their lieutenants has really brought him to the best version of himself.wrsty12-11-2026
- So, you never really compared Paul Seixas with his main rival Isaac Del Toro why jump to Pogačar? They've (Paul & Isaac) raced together here and there, and they've both shared in wins and losses, I think they should be compared to each other, even with Vingegaard and Remco first before even touching Pogačar. From your writing it's like he's better than Vingegaard, Remco and Del Toro already that his main target is now Pogačar 🤔Sadick11-11-2026
- gee i hope its a minor injury. a great rider and ambassador for the sport. get well soon Lucinda.
Davide11-11-2026
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