"Especially when you’re dragging your own teammate,
Matteo Jorgenson, out of the picture," Horner adds. "Maybe he remembers Stage 11 of last year’s Tour when he caught and beat a bonked Pogacar in the sprint — but this was not that."
Nevertheless, Horner must concede that Vingegaard looked good during the day, making some uncharacteristic attacks on the flat in the finale. "Vingegaard hasn’t raced since crashing out of Paris–Nice, where he suffered a concussion. Since then, it’s been nothing but training and altitude camps," says the American, with Horner also seeing positives from another Maillot Jaune contender,
Remco Evenepoel.
"After his December crash involving the mail truck, he came back and won his first race at Itzulia Basque Country. But then his form dropped off dramatically at Flèche Wallonne, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, and the Tour de Romandie. I said back then he needed to take a week off — and from his own interviews, that’s exactly what he did," analyses the 53-year-old. "Now, he claims his weight is 1.5kg better than last year, and he’s already at
Tour de France race weight. That’s why he’s so confident — he’s putting out Tour numbers and believes he can still improve before July."
It's Pogacar though, who clearly remains the man to beat. "He hasn’t raced since destroying everyone at Liège–Bastogne–Liège, going solo to win the biggest one-day race of the season — aside from the World Championships," Horner concludes. "So with Pogacar, Vingegaard, and Evenepoel all here, it’s going to be an exciting week."