The GOAT? Tadej Pogacar sets new Tourmalet climbing record with estimated 6.39w/kg in astonishing Tour de France 2026 display
Cycling
Tadej Pogacar’s brutal Stage 6 demolition at the 2026 Tour de France has now been given a staggering statistical edge, with the Slovenian setting a new climbing record on the Col du Tourmalet during his race-shaping ride to Gavarnie-Gedre.
Pogacar attacked after a huge UAE Team Emirates – XRG lead-out on the Tourmalet, dropped Jonas Vingegaard, took the Souvenir Jacques Goddet at the summit and continued alone to his 23rd career Tour de France stage victory. By the end of the day, he was back in yellow, leading Vingegaard by 2:42 overall, and also top of the mountains classification.
Pogacar sets new Tourmalet benchmark
According to climbing data from Stage 6, Pogacar completed the Col du Tourmalet in 43:12, covering the 17.00km climb at an average speed of 23.61km/h.
The climb, listed at 7.46% average gradient with 1,268 metres of elevation gain, produced a reported 1761 VAM and an estimated 6.39w/kg. That was enough to mark the ride as a new climbing record on one of the most famous mountains in Tour de France history.
The record came at the point where UAE finally broke the race open. Tim Wellens, Felix Grossschartner, Brandon McNulty and Adam Yates had already reduced the front group before Isaac del Toro accelerated five kilometres from the summit, taking Pogacar clear.
Once Del Toro had finished his work, Pogacar pushed on alone. Vingegaard settled into his own rhythm behind, but the gap grew from around half a minute at the summit to a heavy defeat by the finish in Gavarnie-Gedre.
6.39w/kg on the first high-mountain stage
The reported 6.39w/kg figure came on the first true high-mountain stage of the race, after a hot and attritional day in the Pyrenees. Pogacar’s effort was not a short final kick or a controlled marking ride; it was a full Tourmalet assault that carried through the descent and onto the final climb.
Read also
Vingegaard still rode strongly enough to move into second overall and second in the mountains classification, but Pogacar’s Tourmalet record created the decisive split of the stage. Behind them, Isaac del Toro, Remco Evenepoel, Juan Ayuso, Paul Seixas, Florian Lipowitz and Lenny Martinez were left fighting in a separate GC battle.
The result leaves Pogacar with the yellow jersey, the polka dot jersey lead, a 23rd Tour stage win and a near three-minute advantage over his biggest rival. On a day already likely to stand as one of the key moments of the 2026 Tour, the Tourmalet record gives Pogacar’s Stage 6 performance another historic marker.
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.
claps 63visitors 9
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Love this guy. He is such a pure racer.mij07-11-2026
- Fair enough. Everyone’s entitled to one and I respect yours! Nothing wrong with being a one week and GT guy if that’s his vibemij07-11-2026
- LOL...it's a predetermined finish ! N one is 'clashing' at these exhibition crits!frieders307-11-2026
- Surely the UCI and the race organisers have a responsibility to ensure the best medical care is available to riders when incidents like this happen. All very well pushing for global expansion but not so good if riders lives are put at risk because medical support is not up to scratch.Andy12306-11-2026
- Well it clearly helps that this was Pidcock's own car, no?Occam06-11-2026
- The American performance at the World's road race was a masterclass in cycling tactics. If it wasn't McNulty, it might well have been Jorgensen or Simmons to take off and win in a solo break.Occam06-11-2026
- What a gimmick
Rafionain-Glas06-11-2026 - Thats only cause he rides for UAE. In any other team he would be captain in many races atleast. UAE is just to crazymiguel06-11-2026
- He seems to be the rare athlete whose passion and curiosity about life beyond his sport equals his extraordinary achievements in it. It would be great for him to risk less of that life. He seems very grateful and joyful for what he has already attained.
MarkFour06-11-2026 - As much as I admire and even revere Wout, the less I know about his backside the better.MidnightRider06-11-2026
Loading
#TourdeFrance, Stage 6 🇸🇮 TADEJ POGACAR Col du Tourmalet (17,00km; 7,46%; 1268m) 43'12min 23,61km/h 1761 VAM 6,39ᵉw/kg 654 aSLP CLIMBING RECORD
2 Comments