Tadej Pogacar's constant Tour de France attacks "have a little bit to do with arrogance" according to Tom Dumoulin
Cycling
Despite having more than three minutes lead and a third Maillot Jaune win looking locked up barring any incident or injury, Tadej Pogacar was expected to be slightly more defensive in the final week. This was somewhat unsurprisingly not the case though on stage 17.
The Maillot Jaune spotted main rival Jonas Vingegaard was isolated on the penultimate climb of the day and launched a brutal attack. Although the Dane initially looked as if he would be able the follow, the Team Visma | Lease a Bike leader was quickly caught and passed by Remco Evenepoel with Vingegaard left shaking his head. On the descent however, thanks in part to Vingegaard picking up teammate Christophe Laporte, both Evenepoel and Pogacar were reeled back in by the Team Visma | Lease a Bike leader, although the Slovenian did gain 2 seconds on Vingegaard in the sprint for the line.
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In his post-stage interview Pogacar admitted "Sometimes I don't know why I attack." Former Giro d'Italia winner turned expert analyst Tom Dumoulin however, thinks he might have come up with the answer to the UAE Team Emirates leader's constant attacking at the 2024 Tour de France.
"I expected Team Visma | Lease a Bike to attack, but they kept calm. I suspected then that Vingegaard would not be that strong," the Dutchman analyses in conversation to SuperDévoluy. "Pogacar probably thought then: well, I'll do it now. That was pure display of power. He doesn't have to do that at all. It's pure teasing from Vingegaard. It does have a little bit to do with arrogance."
"That duel has been going on for three years now. Pogacar can't handle the fact that he has been defeated for two years in a row," continues Dumoulin. "And finally he is the boss again and he has the legs to hurt Vingegaard and then he thinks: then you will get it back!"
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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- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
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POGACAR ATTACKS! He got bored as expected. #TDF2024
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