“Vingegaard has already raised the white flag” – Bakelants scoffs at Pogacar’s rivals chances at the Tour de France

Cycling
Friday, 20 June 2025 at 11:28
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Jonas Vingegaard may be a two-time Tour de France winner and the man who dethroned Tadej Pogacar in 2022 and 2023, but heading into the 2025 edition, one former pro believes the Slovenian has already won the psychological war.
In his latest column for Het Laatste Nieuws, Jan Bakelants, who recently poured cold water on Remco Evenepoel’s GC hopes, has now cast doubt on Vingegaard’s chances of reclaiming yellow.
“Let me start with a rather uncontroversial observation about the past Dauphiné,” Bakelants wrote. “As far as the value ratios between the classification riders for the Tour are concerned, little to nothing has changed that is remarkable, except that the differences between the three top riders have been further deepened and even secured with an extra retaining wall.”
The message is clear: Pogacar is a level above, and any illusion of parity with Vingegaard or Evenepoel is fading.
Pogacar dominated the Dauphiné with three stage wins and the overall title, barely looking troubled, with his only wobble coming during the time trial. Vingegaard, by contrast, returned from a long lay-off and finished second, but his performance offered little encouragement to Bakelants.
Pogacar's form looks ominous in 2025
Pogacar's form looks ominous in 2025
It is not just the fact that Vingegaard lost, it is the fact that Pogacar did not look to be remotely pushing himself during any of his efforts.
“I hear between the lines that Team Visma | Lease a Bike are trying to convince themselves that things will still turn out well with a view to winning the Tour,” Bakelants continued. “But the friendly way in which Jonas Vingegaard dealt with the supremacy of Tadej Pogacar and the way he raced seemed more like raising the white flag than showing that it can still be an exciting Tour.”
It’s a brutal assessment, and not just aimed at the Dane. Bakelants previously dismantled Evenepoel’s prospects as well, saying, “Remco is not a candidate for winner at the moment. The gap to Vingegaard and Pogacar seems to be even bigger than last year. The difference with those two is too big. It is still two and a half weeks until the start, but miracles do not exist.”
He also questioned Soudal – Quick-Step’s strategy of talking up Evenepoel’s Tour ambitions: “The line between trust the process and naivety is often very thin. It is not bad to raise the white flag now about winning the Tour.”
Now, it seems Visma are guilty of the same in Bakelants’ eyes, offering hope, but not evidence, that Vingegaard can challenge. However, there is no doubt that Vingegaard will have a stronger team around him than Evenepoel, who will be without Mikel Landa this July. Vingegaard will be supported at the Tour by many of his Dauphine squad, and also the star duo of the recent Giro: Wout van Aert and Simon Yates.
The Belgian analyst also dismissed the idea that Pogacar’s spring Classics campaign would leave him vulnerable late in the Tour. “It is said that Pogacar will not have the ideal preparation for the Tour in his legs by riding the classics in the spring, and that he could encounter a bad day in the third week of a major tour. But as it looks now, only a crash or serious material failure can change this direction.”
“I also don't believe that Pogacar needs the ideal Tour preparation to win,” Bakelants added. “Even with a sub-optimal preparation, the difference is huge. He rode the final climb to Combloux a lot faster than Vingegaard did in his supersonic time trial in the 2023 Tour. A statement.”
With less than three weeks to go until the Tour de France begins, Pogacar has already laid down a dominant marker. For Bakelants, the 2025 edition already has a favourite, not just in form, but in control of the narrative.
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3 Comments
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KerisVroom 22 June 2025 at 10:02+ 995

Friendly = raising white flag? Wow, I never know that. /s

I don't know why he complained about the way Vingo raced. That was one of the most aggressive version of Vingo. He attacked on the a sprint stage and went all out of the hilly stages, albeit not being able to beat Pogi there. How is that considered raising white flag?

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