“These stages are about damage control for me”: Mads Pedersen vows to fight back in the points classification after Tim Merlier cuts his lead to 15 points
CyclingSunday, 12 July 2026 at 03:00
Tim Merlier's second consecutive sprint victory at the 2026 Tour de France has dramatically intensified the battle for the green jersey, but Mads Pedersen remains confident in his own strategy. The Soudal Quick-Step sprinter claimed victory in Bergerac ahead of Biniam Girmay and Olav Kooij, earning another maximum haul of points and reducing Pedersen's lead in the classification to just 15 points.
Green jersey battle heats up
Merlier's back-to-back victories have transformed the points standings. Pedersen continues to lead with 228 points, but Merlier has surged into second place on 213 after climbing two positions.
Girmay remains firmly in contention with 203 points, while Jasper Philipsen has moved up to fourth on 175. Max Kanter dropped to fifth, with Kooij's podium finish lifting him into sixth overall.
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For Pedersen, the green jersey has become the clear objective of his Tour. Despite winning the points classifications at both the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España last season, the Dane has never claimed the Tour's prestigious green jersey.
Throughout this edition, he has been aggressively collecting points wherever possible, contesting every intermediate sprint and even joining breakaways to maximise his tally. That approach paid off on stage 4, where he not only collected valuable intermediate points but also went on to win the stage.
Mads Pedersen on stage 6 of the 2026 Tour de France
Contrasting methods for the same prize
Speaking after stage 8, Pedersen acknowledged that Merlier's strategy differs significantly from his own. "I think Tim Merlier has a different approach to the green jersey compared to what I have," Pedersen explained.
"Of course, he can score maximum points at any given sprint finish. As I said yesterday, and this morning, these stages are about damage control for me as I'm just not good enough in mass sprints."
Pedersen intends to continue targeting opportunities on hilly stages, as he knows he cannot match Merlier's speed in flat finishes. "Two different approaches, but the same goal. I hope that it's exciting to watch from home."
Looking ahead, the Lidl-Trek rider has already identified his objective for the next stage. "I hope to score maximum points tomorrow. That's the main goal: trying to repeat what we did on stage 4, and score as much as possible."
Félix SernaCycling Journalist
Félix Serna is a writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2025. He covers professional cycling across both the men’s and women’s calendars, with a focus on UCI rankings, race developments, and rider performance. His work includes interview-based reports, liveblogs, and tournament coverage designed to provide clear, accurate context throughout the season.
In his reporting, Félix regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical reference. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available. He holds a bachelor’s degree in International Studies.
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- Big? I’m always surprised how SMALL gaps are. Winning the Tour by 5 minutes is like winning the 100m sprint by 0.01s Bolt would be winning the Tour (and many other races) by over an hour comparing performance gaps. If the winner ends with an average of 42.9, second will be 42.86Mistermaumau12-07-2026
- Good, then you should also realise how complicated and chaotic it is to completely change timing of such an event and that it won’t be done except in extreme circumstances, the temperatures are not extreme for pros in any way, especially historically, heck amateurs make a point of organising races in far worse conditions just for the experience, Death Valley and the Sahara are prime locations. I expect discussions for earlier future starting times have been held already but that there just isn’t enough justification for change yet. You can tell it’s not a drastic issue within the sport yet, those fighting for change have very few arguments or examples. Sorry but dragging Simpson into it shows desperation and suggesting a blanket time warp from June to September is just a bureaucratic solution to an imaginary problem. Along those lines you should be rewiring the school calendar so kids no longer go during that period, just IN CASE there’s a heatwave. Good luck selling that to parents, especially after everyone’s COVID experience. It seems that very few people can handle looking at global pictures or situations from more than one perspective, all they care about is getting people to bend to their will, with absolutely no concern for other consequences., usually because they don’t realise all that might change.Jumpyjohn12-07-2026
- Other than probably having tried a PFP diet? He’s making MVDP look like a body builder.Jumpyjohn12-07-2026
- Good thing he can ride instead of watch then. Sorry but boredom comes through lack of imagination or some other weakness of the mind. EVERYTHING can be interesting depending on the attitude you take to it. If you find this pretty much expected scenario boring, just blot out the leader, pretend he doesn’t exist or matter) and focus on the rest.Mistermaumau12-07-2026
- Touche, Girmay.
santiagobenites12-07-2026 - Yes, Tadej should relinquish the yellow jersey to.... Jonas! And then get it back on the mountain stages, just to prove he can!Lobz7712-07-2026
- Hills, you're right, don't listen to maumau. You can write what ever you want, even the most correct and true comment, maumau will find a new philosophy, known only to him, and he will contradict your thinking. He's doing it to everyone.mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales12-07-2026
- The more I hear from people like Wiggins, the more I realise how suspect Team Sky was.
Senna196012-07-2026 - Yes, I did all of that before posting, with a few weather sites (not Google), and already knew that they were riding towards a slightly cooler place, but it still ends up with them riding in the hottest part of the day. Several cyclists have called for earlier starting times in general.Hills3312-07-2026
- Balls. Big balls.bobo12-07-2026
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