“You start to dream” – Jan Ullrich heaps praise on Lipowitz

Florian Lipowitz’s steady rise through the professional cycling ranks has reached a new peak during this year’s Tour de France. With another strong ride in the mountains yesterday, the young German is no longer being viewed as just a talent for the future, he’s arrived. Jan Ullrich and Eurosport commentator Robert Bengsch both singled him out for his poise and precision. It wasn’t just the legs that impressed, but the strategic mastery on one of the race’s most punishing days by Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe.

“What he showed again today – Florian Lipowitz and also Primoz Roglic – that was a fantastic performance,” said Ullrich, who won the Tour in 1997. He pointed to the way Lipowitz managed the steep early section of the climb, holding back while others pushed too hard. Bengsch emphasized the difficulty of that decision: “It’s really steep. The first ten kilometers are super, super hard – you can’t just open up the race there.” Lipowitz’s restraint, both agreed, was the right call.

Bengsch sounded genuinely impressed by Lipowitz's level-headed approach. “I don’t know where Florian Lipowitz gets all this experience, this coolness, this ease,” he said. “He just rides his boot, his rhythm. He knows exactly how much lactate he can build up without getting into the red zone. That’s incredible.”

From Bengsch’s perspective, Lipowitz is no longer a prospect in development. “He’s already a great champion,” he said, adding that performances like this are as much about mental control as they are about physical ability.

Still, some questions feel inevitable. Could Lipowitz make a late charge in the general classification? Bengsch dismissed the idea of toppling Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard, “the two aliens,” as he calls them, but admitted, “Of course you start to dream – can Lipowitz perhaps still attack Vingegaard? But I think we’ll have to say goodbye to that.”

Yet even without a bid for yellow, there’s no shortage of motivation. Lipowitz remains in the white jersey as the best young rider and is tracking toward the podium. His teammate at Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe, Primoz Roglic, has bounced back from a rough stretch and could finish just outside the top three.

“If Primoz Roglic can maybe get to four or so, that would be a bomb result,” Ullrich said, summing up the mood among Roglic and German fans. This Tour is giving them more than one reason to cheer.