"The best climbing shape I have ever had" - The man Tadej Pogacar could not drop at the Tour de Suisse
Cycling
The second day of the Tour de Suisse was one where the breakaway succeeded, but behind perhaps the most impressive performance of the day was Mathias Vacek. The Lidl-Trek rider was able to follow Tadej Pogacar's attack, something rarely seen nowadays.
“I felt good again from the start. The parcours suited me even a little bit better than yesterday, so I really believed in myself," Vacek said in words to CyclingPro.net. "I am happy that I could follow today on the climb. It is not every day that you can do that.”
The Czech rider was already showing great legs on the opening stage. But few would've expected the classics specialist, far from a light weight, to follow the yellow jersey on a short but very steep ascent.
UAE Team Emirates - XRG tried working to set up for a result in the way of Jhonatan Narváez, clearly visible as Brandon McNulty and Pogacar himself led the way up the first of the final sequence of climbs and the descent.
Mathias Vacek following Tadej Pogacar at the Tour de Suisse
Vacek follows Pogacar up a steep climb
At first Pogacar let the wheel of Narváez go to try and aid his teammate's chances of winning the stage, but the Ecuadorian was followed by Vacek, rendering the tactic useless. Pogacar then took the front of the group, but dropped his teammate in the process.
But not Vacek, who then took upon himself to work after the climb. “It was nice to be up there with him at the front and to collaborate. In the end it was close, maybe two seconds or something, but the break was really strong.”
Vacek and Pogacar's unlikely collaboration brought benefits to both in the overall classification, but above all showed a level never before seen by the 24-year old.
“I knew I had to do my best to get the best possible result for the team. It was a fast stage and it was also hard to catch the break, especially with only UAE pulling. Anyway, it was a good day.”
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Vacek more than ready for the Tour de France
Unlike previous years, Vacek did not reach his best form during the spring classics, far from it in fact. But he has proven that was circumstantial, as after a long block of training, he is back to top form.
“After the Classics season I put in some work. I had time to prepare for this race and also towards the Tour de France. This is probably the best climbing shape I have ever had," he admits. "I am definitely more confident on the climbs than ever before.”
With the differences created in the first two days, Vacek enters the conversation for the final podium. He downplays it however: “We are not really here to go for GC. The last stage is super hard with the long climbs, and I think I am still missing a little bit on climbs like that. I want to ride the time trial full gas and see how I perform. From there, we will see.”
Vacek should gain further time on his direct competition during this Saturday's time-trial, in which he will also be a favourite for the win. Whilst he is not the strongest of climbers, he can defend himself, and will be an interesting rider to watch on the queen stage that will follow.
“Yesterday I showed that I could be up there with the best, and today I tried again. It is not easy to compete against UAE and Tadej, but we will keep fighting," 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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