Tadej Pogacar has ridden enough Tours de France — and certainly seen enough at this year’s Tour — to know that this race cannot be fully tamed, no matter his dominance in reaching a record-tying fifth title in cycling’s greatest test.
“It’s the Tour, three weeks, a lot of s—- can happen,” Pogacar said after the penultimate 20th stage on Saturday.
Yes, Pogacar largely secured this win after just the sixth of 21 stages way back on July 9 in the Pyrenees.
He made it official Sunday. Pogacar cycled into Paris with a final margin of victory of 6 minutes, 26 seconds over Belgian Remco Evenepoel.
He wore the yellow jersey every day since that sixth stage, at first with a sizable lead of 2:42. He added to it in week two, then seemed to say enough was enough in week three once it ballooned at one point to over seven minutes.
At 27, the Slovenian became the youngest of the handful of riders to share the record of five Tour titles. The others: Belgian Eddy Merckx, Spaniard Miguel Indurain and Frenchmen Bernard Hinault and Jacques Anquetil.
Is Pogacar more dominant than ever? The numbers say this was similar to 2024, when Pogacar led every day after stage four with a final margin of 6:17.
This year, Pogacar was so comfortable in the third week — usually the decisive week in a Tour — that he passed on chances to add to his sack of stage victories. He shifted to the role of domestique, helping teammate Isaac del Toro secure third place overall and a place next to him on the Champs-Elysees podium.
Still, his five stage wins at this Tour give him 26 for his career, fourth all-time behind Mark Cavendish (35), Merckx (34) and Hinault (28).
But at points over the three weeks, we were reminded of what can derail a Tour, even for the best riders.
Jonas Vingegaard — who beat Pogacar in the 2022 and 2023 Tours — crashed out on stage 15, breaking his collarbone after colliding with road furniture.
“Maybe at the beginning we didn’t have the best relationship, but in the last two years, we became good rivals, respected rivals, competitors, but I also think kind of friends,” Pogacar said that day. “The Tour will not be the same without him.”
Vingegaard was already a distant 4:30 behind Pogacar at the time.
But could this Tour have been different from the start for Vingegaard’s Visma-Lease a Bike outfit? What if Wout van Aert, who helped pull Vingegaard up the Pyreneees and Alps in previous years, and the only cyclist to beat Pogacar in a 2026 at Paris-Roubaix, didn’t miss this Tour with an elbow injury?
Then in stage 16, German Florian Lipowitz, third at the 2025 Tour, crashed on a late turn in the individual time trial and broke his collarbone.
Minutes later, Pogacar flinched in the same place. The heart-in-your-throat moment was a barefaced example of the thin margins that shape a Tour.
Pogacar also avoided the worst of the illness that spread through his UAE Team Emirates XRG outfit in the third week.
“They’ve been through hell in the last days,” he said after winning the 19th stage at legendary Alpe d’Huez.
Variables aside, this Tour reinforced the chasm separating Pogacar from the field.
Take the words of Evenepoel after winning the 16th stage time trial by 28 seconds over Pogacar.
“It’s just amazing that I can be a bit close to him,” Evenepoel said. “It’s like a big step forward that I can at least be a bit around him, and I try to learn from him.”
What’s next for Pogacar? He can stand alone with a sixth Tour title in 2027, though perhaps a younger rider like del Toro, 22, or 19-year-old Frenchman Paul Seixas, fourth in his Tour debut, can close the gap.
Pogacar has yet to win the Vuelta a Espana, but hasn’t seemed too bothered by that hole in his resume. He hasn’t raced that event, which is held in September, since 2019, when he placed third in his maiden Grand Tour at age 20.
He could also target a world title in the time trial, won by Evenepoel the last three years. Or a first Olympic gold medal in 2028.
Or maybe none of them. Pogacar provided a peek into his outlook after Saturday’s 20th stage when speaking about the 22-year-old del Toro.
“I definitely will not be doing this for too much long time, I think,” he told European broadcaster TNT Sports. “Isaac showed great potential, but we don’t put any pressure yet on Isaac. I think he’s still young. He learns a lot. He’s a quick learner, he’s super smart, big talent, big engine. Let’s see where the road takes us.”
