The best climbing performance in cycling history? Tadej Pogacar puts in 7W/Kg for the entire Alpe d'Huez and beats Marco Pantani's record
CyclingSaturday, 25 July 2026 at 15:27
Tadej Pogacar has won the Alpe d'Huez for the first time in his career this Friday, and his power output was one of the highest in cycling's history when it comes to the Tour de France. Aside from that, he also beat Marco Pantani's historic ascent of the climb back in 1998.
Pogacar beats Alpe d'Huez time record
It was a day where many expected interesting statistics. Despite being late in the Tour, the stage up to the final ascent was rather short, and was also not raced at full speed. It was a day where records could come down, and they did.
Pantani's record of the climb was of 36:40 minutes, one that held for decades, despite the many ascents of the climbs in the 21st century. Most recently, that had happened in 2022; but in comparison, 2026 was a climb ridden at much higher speed.
35:27 is the time Pogacar put in on the climb, attacking the peloton almost at the very base of it, and riding the entire climb by himself. Through the crowded roads, dozens of breakaway escapees and the 21 switchbacks of the mythical ascent, he put in a stellar ride - the fastest anyone has ever ridden a bike up it.
He won the stage, catching up with Lenny Martínez and Richard Carapaz; and put in over 2:30 minutes over his most direct rival Remco Evenepoel. Evenepoel's time (as well as that of the likes of Isaac del Toro, Paul Seixas, Mattias Skjelmose...) were close to previous records, and are also amongst the best times ever on the climb.
Tadej Pogacar won at Alpe d'Huez
Read also
7W/Kg for 35 minutes on Alpe d'Huez
What was perhaps most impressive was the power estimate. In 2024, Pogacar put in the most impressive climbing performance in the sport's history, riding 6.98W/Kg for 39 minutes on Plateau de Beille.
The 2024 Tour is widely regarded as the Grand Tour with the highest level ever, with Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel also amongst those who put in the best in-race climbing performances of their career.
This year the numbers have been very high once again. Pogacar had been building up towards it, and according to 'Naichaca', an X user with high credibility when it comes to power output estimates, Pogacar rode 6.99W/Kg for 35:27 minutes.
The 7W/Kg barrier for a climb of over 30 minutes is a barrier that no longer stands effectively, with the Alpe d'Huez being the location for Pogacar's best climbing performance of the year.
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.
claps 2visitors 1
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Maybe he’s tired from yesterday? Regardless, I think it’s great character of him to help a protege.b3tlla25-07-2026
- Its just stupid for Pogi in yellow to work for a weaker rider in a mountain stage. If Jonas was there this would not have happenedabstractengineer25-07-2026
- A few times yesterday I thought the crowd was going to take out a few riders. And, the same could happen today as well as they are returning to the Alpemd197525-07-2026
- Sensational headline with little substance.
KerisVroom25-07-2026 - Madeleines or haribos.... more a comedy scrap. It's funny but when you let alcohol take over this happens and I suspect the old chap in the white had been refreshing himself in the heat.slappers6625-07-2026
- Some things I didn't foresee. But I was sure about Ayuso...MajorPayne25-07-2026
- I watched this stage on Eurosport 1 (Portugal) and the commentators said the organization had announced barriers throughout the last 5km, but it was clear that was not true. There were some barriers around 4km and then in the last 1,5km to the finish line, but wherever there were ropes "guarding" the spectators, they were pushed easily to the middle of the road, leaving a single track corridor and sometimes not even that much! That's not supporting, that's just caring about your own 3 seconds of fame when the camera motos go by... Very dangerous and annoying for the riders.Lobz7725-07-2026
- The riders they need for gc are all locked in to other teams. I can't see these additions making much difference.Cyclingsbestfan25-07-2026
- History in the making!Lobz7725-07-2026
- I'm not sure who started it, or what it was about. Sadly it esculated and the older man took a big left hook to the jaw that nearly put him over the armco. Been on the alpe a few times with my family and it always has been peace and love with folks just having a great time.Cyclingsbestfan25-07-2026
Loading
Write a comment