Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates), second in this Tour de France, once again tried everything to overthrow his rival in the yellow jersey, Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma), on Wednesday, on the 17th stage of the Tour de France. The Slovenian was the strongest, in the sprint, in the extreme percentages of the Peyragudes altiport. However, he was unable to outrun the man in yellow, still clinging to his rear wheel despite multiple attacks.
Generally, when Tadej Pogacar says, Tadej Pogacar does. As he had announced several times during several interviews after the stages, “Pogi” attacked again on Wednesday. From the Hourquette d’Ancizan, through a transcended Mikkel Bjerg, he gradually exhausted the riders of the Jumbo-Visma.
In Val Louron-Azet, the Dutch team faltered against the impressive work of Brandon McNulty. The American climber, who also received the prize for combativeness at the end of the stage, was the guardian angel of Tadej Pogacar, however deprived of his lieutenant Rafal Majka. McNulty achieved a first on this Grande Boucle: lonely the yellow jersey. At the top of this penultimate difficulty, the white jersey even tested his rival by attacking him, still followed like his shadow.
In the final ascent, Pogacar did not attack and waited for the sprint, on 16% slopes, to dispose of Vingegaard as a player. The two strong men of this 109th edition of the Tour de France once again entertained their world on the roads of the biggest cycling race in the world. In accounting terms, the rider from the UAE team now has three successes, but the Dane maintains his lead at more than two minutes over his best enemy before the final mountain stage on Thursday and the time trial. , Saturday.
On the French side, Romain Bardet (Team DSM) carried out one of the great operations of the day after his disappointment on Tuesday. On the attack from the Col d’Aspin, he was taken over by the leaders but resisted to manage the gap in the ascent to Peyragudes. He was in the company of Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) for a long time, but finally had to let the Welshman go, who consolidates his third place overall. The Auvergnat, he goes back to sixth place (9’21).
David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) has, like the others, lost contact with the Pogacar-Vingegaard during the ascent of Val Louron-Azet, while limiting breakage. The Breton even got closer to fourth place in the general classification (at 7’57). Crossing the line five seconds ahead of Nairo Quintana, he is only three short units behind the Colombian.