Tour de France stage 7: Tadej Pogačar storms to second win on Super Planches des Belles Filles

Clawing back his rival right before the line, Tadej Pogačar (UAE Emirates) nipped past Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) for victory on the Super Planches des Belles Filles summit of the Tour de France.

Vingegaard had looked poised for victory after a lighting attack close to the line, overhauling breakaway rider Lennard Kämna (Bora-Hansgrohe) with 100 meters to go and initially gapping Pogačar.

The defending champion dug deep and managed to reel in the Dane, then darted through on his right to claim his second victory in two days.

“It was a really difficult race today, especially on the last climb,” he said. “Jonas [Vingegaard]’s attack was so strong. But I told myself that, after my guys had been working all day, I had to push all the way to the finish line. Also, Urska [his fiancé Urska Zigart – ed.] was at the finish line, and my family was at the bottom of the climb. Furthermore, we have launched our cancer research foundation today – hence I was wearing some special shoes. All those were reasons to win today.”

UAE Team Emirates had driven the pace on the Tour’s first summit finish to hew back the break’s advantage and soften up the other GC riders. Rafal Majka led towards the concluding gravel section, dramatically waving Pogačar through to take over, and while the Slovenian initially appeared unable to distance Vingegaard and his teammate Primož Roglič, the two-time Tour champion had the last laugh.

Maximum time bonus collected, he ended the stage 35 seconds ahead of the runner-up in the reshuffled overall standings. Geraint Thomas conceded 14 seconds in finishing fifth but moved up to third overall, one minute 10 seconds back. His Ineos Grenadiers teammate Adam Yates is a further eight seconds back in fourth.

They will be demoralized, though, by the race leader’s display, two years after he triumphed on the same summit in the race-winning uphill time trial.

“It’s been a long time since my 2020 success on this climb,” he said. “It was a big goal for me to win today. Of course Jonas is a big rival for me. I think he is one of the strongest climbers of the world right now, probably the best, and he has a very strong team.

“I’m doing well too… but this is cycling, and things can change from one second to the next.”

Relentless attacking as stage hunters seek early buffer

Stage 7 of the Tour de France was the big showdown for the climbers, being as it was the first summit finish of the race. The 176.3 kilometer race from Tomblaine to La Super Planche Des Belles Filles crossed two climbs before the concluder, with the third category Col de Grosse Pierre topping out at km 107.7 and the identically-ranked Col des Croix summiting at km 136.1. The final climb was ranked as a category one and was 9.7 kilometers in length.

Mikkel Honoré (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl) sparked off the day’s break after approximately six kilometers and was soon joined by several others, including Trek-Segafredo pair Mads Pedersen and Giulio Giccone, but this group was dragged back after several kilometers. Several other unsuccessful moves went clear, including one containing multiple green jersey winner Peter Sagan (Team TotalEnergies), trying to improve on his distant fifth place tally in the points competition.

Former stage winner Simon Geschke (Cofidis) then made a surge after approximately 40 kilometers and was joined for a while by Filippo Ganna. The Ineos Grenadiers rider added some heft and helped pad the lead, but with others trying hard to bridge and the gap slow to go out further, he sat up and went back to the bunch.

The day’s break takes shape

Geschke was then reinforced by 10 others, namely Pedersen and Ciccone, Kasper Asgreen (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl), Imanol Erviti (Movistar), Vegard Stake Laengen (UAE Team Emirates), Luke Durbridge (Team BikeExchange-Jayco), Cyril Barthe (B&B Hotels), Bora-hansgrohe duo Lennard Kämna and Maximilian Schachmann (Bora-Hansgrohe) plus Dylan Teuns (Bahrain-Victorious). The latter had won atop the same climb in 2019 and was determined to try again three years later.

The gap was two and a half minutes after 70 kilometers of racing but the UAE Team Emirates squad of race leader Tadej Pogačar accelerated to pare it back to two minutes. Stake Laengen sat up and went back to the peloton, while the other ten continued on to the intermediate sprint, where Pedersen led Geschke and Barthe over the line.

The peloton crossed the same line two minute later, with Kasper Asgreen (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl) in front of green jersey wearer Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma). Van Aert finished two places in front of Fabio Jakobsen (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl) to boost his lead in that competition by the same number of points.

Thinning out the competition

The Bora-Hansgrohe duo of Lennard Kämna and Maximilian Schachmann put the pressure on the break prior to the first of those categorized climbs, the cat 3 Col de Grosse Pierre, and were joined by Durbridge and, just before the summit, by Geschke and Teuns. Geschke and Kämna snagged the available points.

The peloton was two minutes and 40 seconds back at that point, and then three minutes 10 seconds behind with 50 kilometers to go.

The leading quintet was rejoined by Barthe and Erviti and they raced onto the Col des Croix, where Geschke was again first to the summit, beating Teuns. They were two minutes 1 second ahead with 20 kilometers remaining, making it theoretically possible for someone from the break to prevail to the finish. Much would depend on what happened between there and the start of the final climb, but with UAE Team Emirates chasing hard it made things difficult.

The break raced over the top of the uncategorized Col de la Chevestraye and hit the base of the La Super Planche Des Belles Filles with an advantage of 1 minute 43. The bunch had stalled after UAE’s chasing and while Ineos Grenadiers then took things up, this gap in pacesetting had given the break’s a lifeline.

Going for gold

Erviti was dropped, leaving six riders out front. Kämna upped the pace with 7.5 kilometers left, and only Teuns, Durbridge and Geschke were able to follow. The latter then attacked with 6.8 km left and got a slight gap, with Teuns and Kämna leaving Durbridge and trying to get across.

Kämna gapped Teuns and bridged to Geschke, then kicked clear with five kilometers to go. He still had 45 seconds over the GC group with two km left, handing him a solid chance.

Rafal Majka stretched things out in the bunch, Pogačar poised on his wheel. Majka waved him through as the gravel began and Pogačar seemed to quicken but was marked by Roglič and Vingegaard.

Undeterred, the race leader continued to drive the pace and then Vingegaad attacked, catching and passing Kämna with 100 metres to go and initially gapping Pogačar. The UAE Team Emirates rider came back to him, though, and then slipped past to punch the air, land his second consecutive stage win, and pad his overall lead.