Vingegaard unsurprised by Pogacar cracking: "I understood that he would explode, those who shoot too much are insecure and pay for it in the end"
Cycling
In an exciting and hotly contested 2023 Tour de France, Danish cyclist Jonas Vingegaard has left a statement that illustrates the pivotal moment that all but sealed his second victory in the competition. In a statement collected by the folks at Eurosport, Vingegaard shared his impressions of his top rival Tadej Pogacar's explosion on the Col de la Loze and how that allowed him to secure his lead.
Vingegaard's strategy was clear from the start: hold off Pogacar's onslaught and wait for the right moment to counterattack. "Pogacar has been attacking me for 15 days. Because of his aggressiveness, I understood that at some point he would explode. Those who shoot too much are insecure and in the end they pay for it," the Danish cyclist told the media present at the interview.
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The rivalry between Vingegaard and Pogacar had intensified with back-to-back attacks in previous stages, such as in Cauterets-Cambasque, Puy de Dôme and Grand Colombier. These attempts by Pogacar to weaken his opponent only strengthened the determination of Vingegaard, who showed a great ability to measure his efforts and remain calm under pressure.
On the Courchevel stage, Pogacar's explosion on the dreaded Col de la Loze was the turning point for the Dane. Vingegaard managed to take advantage of his rival's moment of weakness and, in an impressive performance, put almost six minutes into the lead after Pogacar's collapse.
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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.
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- Congrats! It is done so now is time for CX.averagecyclist15-11-2026
- It's going to happen at some point. It will happen to Tadej as well, we all get older. Jonas was in pretty great form at the tour. I still consider him a top two or three cyclist in the world, until he's not.awp15-11-2026
- mij, I am not so sure of that. I have been on a spine ward at a Denver hospital that had quite a few spinal injuries from mountain biking.BDBigGuy15-11-2026
- Pogi takes care of his teammates in races and training. Tadej Pogačar is widely praised within the cycling peloton for his fair and egalitarian leadership, actively supporting his UAE teammates both on the road during races and behind the scenes at training camps. Rather than acting like an untouchable superstar, he has intense team loyalty by sharing daily chores, giving up personal glory to help domestiques, and publicly praising their sacrifices. Unlike some Grand Tour contenders, like Vingegaard, who occasionally train away from their squads, Pogi consistently attends team training camps alongside his domestiques, making the exact same sacrifices to build friendship. I love how Pogačar shares his teammates-domestiques, either when they succeed or win in races or when they simply just do a good job for him. It has to be a great moral boost for them. And then they work even harder and go even deeper for Pogi. This is teamwork.PogiSloFans15-11-2026
- Yeah, what he said!Lozza15-11-2026
- I’m sure Jasper Philipsen would disagree with you.Lozza15-11-2026
- Article says he was “out for a spin around the town”, implying not off-road.Lozza15-11-2026
- let’s be honest, Alpecin is all about one rider - MVDP. I’m sure he gets whatever he needs, the rest get the scraps.mij15-11-2026
- there are more vicious injuries on a road bike than a mountain bike far and away.mij15-11-2026
- That'll be one crazy rider
Rafionain-Glas15-11-2026
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🗣️ "Los que disparan demasiado son inseguros y al final lo pagan". La explicación de Vingegaard a la pájara de Pogacar. #TDF2023 | #TourEurosport
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