Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) attacked in the final 4 kilometers of the Pla d’Adet to finish 39 seconds ahead of his main rival Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) and win stage 14. Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) finished third 1:10″ down and moved from second to third on the overall GC.
Pogacar explained afterwards what the team’s plan had been. “We suddenly found ourselves in this situation. Adam attacked, which meant that Visma | Lease a Bike had to keep that difference under control. If I could ride to Adam, he could still do an important lead turn for me. That’s how it turned out. It wasn’t planned. It was more instinctive. We wanted to go for the stage. But the plan was just to make the sprint hard, maybe take some seconds at the end and win the stage. But this is much better.”
Vingegaard said afterwards that he gave it his all and that he is looking towards tomorrow’s stage which suits him better. “I performed very well myself, so I can’t be disappointed about that. Of course it’s a shame that I lost forty seconds. The last three kilometers of the climb were a bit flatter and even a bit downhill, so that suited him a bit better. On the steep parts I took back some time. I think he took some time on the flatter and downhill parts, because he has more absolute power. In that respect, it gives confidence for tomorrow. Then we will finish on a different kind of climb.”
Evenepoel was satisfied with his ride and the fact that he didn’t lose so much time. “I followed as long as possible and lost a bit of time, but also gained a bit of time on the rest. Which is positive. These are the value ratios. I show that I am quite close to the level of Jonas Vingegaard. Okay, he will ride me off, but maybe tomorrow it is up to me to ride him off. It is fighting day by day, keep working and hope that I can keep that podium place.”
Asked about Covid in the peloton, Evenepoel said he hopes to stay healthy. “As long as the riders are not really sick, the rule is that they can continue racing. I experienced it last year, but I would rather not have it happen again. Especially with the beautiful race I am riding. I am currently well on my way to the podium. Hopefully the beast will not get me and I can continue.”
RESULTS
Stage 14: Pau > Saint-Lary-Soulan Pla d’Adet (151.9km)
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
