“We had expected to be a little behind” – Jonas Vingegaard loses yellow but stays calm after Tadej Pogacar strikes on Stage 3 at 2026 Tour de France
Cycling
Jonas Vingegaard’s yellow jersey was gone at Les Angles, but the Tour de France duel with Tadej Pogacar had not tilted as sharply as the podium ceremony suggested.
Pogacar won stage 3 after UAE Team Emirates – XRG dragged the race back together and superstar teammate Isaac del Toro launched him into the final kick to the line. Vingegaard finished second, lost the race lead, but crossed the line still level with Pogacar on overall time, with only countback separating the two rivals after the opening three days.
“Of course that is disappointing”
Within minutes, the Team Visma | Lease a Bike leader was already pointing to the part of the result that mattered beyond the jersey. “It ended up being quite a hard stage, but I think we came through it well and defended ourselves well,” Vingegaard told TV 2 Sport after the finish. “Obviously, I lose the leader’s jersey, and of course that is disappointing, but on a finish like this I actually think I can be quite satisfied with it.”
The stage had turned into a UAE chase after a long and aggressive breakaway fight, with Alex Baudin briefly threatening yellow before later securing the polka dots. UAE eventually brought the move back, Del Toro led Pogacar into position, and the Slovenian had enough punch to take both the stage and the jersey.
Vingegaard followed the move but could not match the final acceleration. The gap on the road, though, never opened.
“It is a good starting point for us”
Vingegaard’s most revealing line came when he looked beyond the podium ceremony and the change of yellow. “We are on the same time now, and that is actually fine for us,” he added. “We had maybe expected to be a little behind at this point, so it is a good starting point for us.”
Read also
That leaves the first Pogacar-Vingegaard exchange with two different readings. Pogacar has already won a direct finish against Vingegaard, UAE have taken back-to-back stages through Del Toro and Pogacar, and yellow is now on the Slovenian’s shoulders.
But Vingegaard is not chasing seconds yet. After three stages, he and Pogacar remain locked together on the clock, with Remco Evenepoel third at 23 seconds, Del Toro fourth at 24 and Juan Ayuso fifth at 27.
Pogacar left Les Angles with the stage win and the yellow jersey. Vingegaard left without either, but also without the early deficit Visma had prepared for.
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 3visitors 3
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
- I'm picking .... .... Never mind 🫥flyer07-11-2026
- If Tiberi has a better and more consistent 2027 I somehow doubt it will be because of this victorious warning. Unless his preparation has been off, cycling isn't football.flyer07-11-2026
- Love this guy. He is such a pure racer.mij07-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment