Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard - Destined to do this forever: The story of their five Tour de France battles
CyclingSaturday, 04 July 2026 at 12:24
Like eternal dance partners, we head into the sixth Tour de France in a row that Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar will trade blows and do battle at the front of the Tour de France - some would say they're destined to do it forever.
Of their five meetings at La Grand Boucle, Pogacar has won three yellow jerseys and Vingegaard three, making it a rivalry that has dominated half a decade of cycling's greatest show.
The pair have lit up iconic climbs like Mont Ventoux, Alpe d'Huez and Grand Colombier, and paint interesting contrasts when it comes to styles, tactics and their personalities off the bike.
Ahead of the two renewing hostilities once more, we've looked at a snapshot of how the two came to be the greatest rivals and the ultimate picture of what the general classification of the Tour for five years.
A new challenger rises
The first of the Pogacar-Vingegaard saga is more of a prelude for what's to come. Vingegaard started as domestique for Primoz Roglic, but when the Slovenian crashed out, the Dane and Visma found themselves with a new focus - stages and a chance for Vingegaard to measure himself in GC.
Meanwhile, Pogacar had established himself as the yellow jersey and was in cruise control ahead of the rest of the contenders before Mont Ventoux came. On the legendary climb, Vingegaard infamously pulled out a gap on Pogacar, wearing the white jersey.
Nothing more would come, however, as Pogacar sealed a second yellow jersey in a row.
Isolating the smiling assassin
Fast forward twelve months and their rivalry grows. Now a co-leader with Roglic and the Slovenian suffering a week one crash that effectively ended his GC challenge - Vingegaard hatched a plan to challenge his smiling assassin rival.
The pair were locked in battle on GC stages, often leaving the rest in their wake. The crucial moment came on stage 11's Col du Galibier as Visma isolated and then attacked Pogacar in turns - eventually cracking him later in the stage on Col du Glandon.
With more arm-wrestling in the stages after, Vingegaard delivered the killer blow on the Hautacam. With satellite rider Wout van Aert meeting the duo ahead of a summit finish, van Aert and Vingegaard broke the elastic and the Dane set off into a yellow jersey sunset.
Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard
I'm gone, I'm dead
The 2023 Tour can be remembered for the pair once again locking horns for over two weeks before one could really put the other to bed. But when Vingegaard did lay his marker, it was unlike any defeat Pogacar ever tasted.
A frighteningly strong time trial from Vingegaard saw him put 1:38 into the Slovenian, but that was just the appetiser - the main course lives long in cycling's memory.
Visma and Vingegaard put in a huge performance to make stage 17 a suffer-fest before the iconic Col de la Loze came. As the peloton flew into its lower slopes, Pogacar had been beaten.
He uttered the now famous phrase to his UAE Team Emirates sports directors: "I'm gone. I'm dead" as he dropped from the group of favourites and lost several minutes.
Revenge of the fallen
One major talking point followed Pogacar and Vingegaard into the 2024 Tour de France, had the Dane recovered well enough from his crash at Itzulia Basque Country that saw him suffer multiple broken ribs, a collapsed lung, and a broken collarbone?
The answer, in short, was yes. However, in a Tour de France that saw the peloton climb faster than in previous editions, Pogacar had clearly grown stronger - particularly gaining an edge on high energy-expenditure days - his previous weakness against Vingegaard.
Pogacar repeatedly showed Vingegaard a clean set of heels when the race went uphill, and on Vingegaard's last stand on stage 15's Plateau de Beille summit finish, Pogacar masterfully paced his effort to absorb everything he had then leave him in his wake.
Pogacar comfortably reclaimed the yellow jersey over the coming stages with a dominant finish in Nice.
Read also
Total domination
If Pogacar laid a marker at the 2024 Tour de France, he circled, underlined and highlighted it the following year - taking a comprehensive yellow jersey.
Vingegaard looked strong throughout the first week of the race, offering explosivity to match the Slovenian on punch climbs and finishes. However, his challenge would falter in the high mountains.
For example, on stage 12 he put over two minutes into Vingegaard in a dominant solo victory. In a slightly more low-key final week, Pogacar defended his lead with ease, shutting down attacks from Vingegaard and other GC contenders.
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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- Second at the Vuelta, 4th at the Tour, Silver medal at the WC, stage winner at all three GTsantipodeanpedalfan04-07-2026
- Huge huge fan of Remco, and this I would agree with.anonymouscyclist04-07-2026
- Cycling's getting like football punditry..
leedorney04-07-2026 - Just a thought, but with Ben O'Connor leaving Jayco and the team seeking increased investment from the UAE, he may be a standout leader with complete team focus and support. It would see Jayco return to the days of the Yates boys.whit2pet04-07-2026
- I don't think Jayco will be upset. His form over the past two seasons has been below par. The team will probably cease to exist after 2027 anyway.whit2pet04-07-2026
- The same thing as Cian for Movistar, who seems to get a headline a week with zero accomplishmentsmij04-07-2026
- Remind me again what Ben has done lately to warrant all this hype?frieders303-07-2026
- Even with Onley they’d be fortunate to get in the top 5, hate to say it but it saves them embarrassment not to have to try for GCJumpyjohn03-07-2026
- A team that can afford his salaryJumpyjohn03-07-2026
- You always manage to make me laugh. You are such a funny man.MajorPayne03-07-2026
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