"Tadej Pogacar was fuming... he chased down Visma riders” - Picnic PostNL star shines new light on Tour de France controversy
Cycling
At the 2025 Tour de France, Tadej Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates - XRG and Jonas Vingegaard's Team Visma | Lease a Bike went head to head yet again, in the fight for the Maillot Jaune. Whilst there has long been plenty of mutual respect between the two team leaders, there was notable tension between UAE and Visma this time around.
That tension wasn't something just seen by fans and experts through the benefit of the TV cameras either. In and amongst the peloton itself, there was a real feeling of animosity brewing between UAE Team Emirates - XRG and Team Visma | Lease a Bike. Reflecting on this, Tour de France debutant Tobias Lund Andresen recalled one incident in particular that caused a furious Pogacar to hit out at his rivals in black and yellow.
The incident in question? When Jonas Vingegaard had crashed on stage 15, only for Visma riders to attack at the front of the bunch, rather than wait up and help their team leader get back to the safety of the peloton.
“I think it was a strange thing to do. I do understand that the other stars also want their chance, but they could have joined the breakaway instead — and in fact, they were attacking up the road themselves,” Andresen recalls to Eurosport's Radio Tour, with his confusion matched by frustration from Pogacar.
When the Slovenian had crashed a few days earlier, Vingegaard had classily helped slow the GC group to wait for Pogacar, ensuring the race wouldn't be decided by such an incident. Looking to try and repay the favour, Pogacar was met by opposition in his attempts to slow the pace by Vingegaard's own teammates.
“Tadej was trying to slow things down because there had been a crash. He was fuming, and at first, he only chased down Visma riders,” recalls Andresen, with the Dane surprised at the reaction of Visma riders, noting how his Picnic PostNL team were all in to support Oscar Onley. “It’s odd. Before every stage, we’re given our roles. On that day, five of us were assigned to support Oscar, so if there’s a crash, we’re there.”
“Every time he stops to take a leak, three of us pull over with him. These are the sorts of things you agree on beforehand. So I don’t know how their roles are divided, but I do find it strange — especially when you have a genuine shot at winning the Tour de France,” he adds in conclusion.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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