"Why wouldn't they want to go for it really?" - Adam Blythe hits back at UAE criticism after Pogacar victory and yellow jersey
Cycling
Tadej pogacar took his first stage win of the 2026 Tour de France with a decisive uphill finish victory on Monday's stage 3. After UAE Team Emirates - XRG controlled the stage, the Slovenian goes into the yellow jersey.
Outsprinting rivals Jonas Vingegaard, Paul Seixas and Remco Evenepoel among other contenders, Pogacar made it two stage wins in a row after he helped Isaac del Toro to a stunning stage 2 win.
Despite jubilant celebrations among the Emirati team, there was some notable frustration among teams and riders who had hoped for a breakaway battle as the race crossed into France.
Despite a parcours favouring attackers, UAE had all eyes on the stage and thus the yellow jersey - with Pogacar and Vingegaard now level on time, the Slovenian takes yellow due to better stage placings so far.
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Blythe can't understand UAE criticism
As analysts digested the result and reaction, Adam Blythe couldn't understand criticism levelled at UAE for going for a stage win when it was on for Pogacar.
"You have to question, why wouldn't they want to go for it really?," Blythe said on TNT Sports after stage 3.
"They've got such a strong team, they've got two of the strongest riders within this race. They can use eachother brilliantly. Tadej can pick and choose relatively what stages he wants to go for. There's a Tour de France stage up for grabs, why wouldn't you want to go for it?"
When it comes to taking the yellow jersey and all the other responsibilities that come with such as media interviews and doping control, Blythe believes it's second nature to Pogacar.
Pogacar in yellow after win
"That man spent more time doing that than he has not doing the other side of it. He's more than used to it, he's well equipped for it," Blythe said.
But Blythe argued that it made perfect sense for UAE to attack stage 3, noting that they were simply doing what every other team would do in that situation, with one glaring difference: they have Pogacar.
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He continued: "There's a point in here, I'm guilty of it as well, we think too much about this yellow jersey - keeping it for too long. If there's one man, one team, it's them. From start of the race - from stage 1 if they had it - all the way and through to the end."
He concluded: "I just think they're looking at it from, as 90 percent of the teams do in this race. 'This is the Tour de France, we want to win a stage. If there's a stage that suits us, grab it with both hands and go for it'. They're doing exactly that, but they have Tadej."
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- 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
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