Pogaçar destroys the 2026 Tour in the Tourmalet

The Slovenian cyclist Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) has given this Thursday a coup of authority in the 2026 Tour de France by winning the sixth stage, held between Pau and Gavarnie-Gèdre over 186.2 kilometers, after launching a devastating attack 4.2 kilometers from the top of the Tourmalet that left the Danish Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike), who arrived without a response 2:38 minutes into the finish line, to also wear the yellow jersey.

In the first major high mountain stage of this edition, Pogacar broke the race in the most emblematic pass of the Pyrenees with an acceleration that only Vingegaard could initially try to follow, although the Dane ended up giving in before reaching the Tourmalet and saw how the current champion left alone, 42 kilometers from the finish line, towards a victory that completely changes the panorama of the general classification.

The until now leader, the Norwegian Torstein Træen (Uno-X Mobility), lost the yellow jersey after being dropped in the Tourmalet and also suffering a fall during the descent, which forced him to receive medical assistance before being able to continue the stage. It was also a very difficult day for the Movistar Team, who lost the Belgian Cian Uijtdebroeks by abandonment.

Pogacar gave a display of strength in the Tourmalet. In the sixth stage of the Tour, with a world of racing ahead. And he didn’t even need his teammate Isaac del Toro to tighten the pace before launching his offensive, because he barely made it about 300 meters on his wheel before, 4.2 from the top of the Tourmalet, changing the day and the race.

The Slovenian, sitting on the bicycle and with apparent ease, changed his pace and left all his rivals in awe. From that moment on, the last kilometers of the historic port, full of people, offered a devastating image, with an endless line of runners ascending completely one by one, without groups and each one at their own pace.

The current two-time champion of the French round also crowned the Tourmalet after completing the ascent in 35:02 minutes, establishing a new record for the mythical Pyrenean summit before further extending his lead during the descent and on the final climb towards Gavarnie-Gèdre. With this victory, Pogacar now has 23 stage victories in the Tour de France and reaches 123 professional victories.

And Vingegaard’s response lasted just a few minutes, when he nourished for a few kilometers the hope of keeping the duel and this Tour alive, which, barring surprise, seems to be already booked. The Dane was the only one capable of reacting to the Slovenian’s violent change of pace, but, when he seemed to stabilize the difference and even contain the bleeding, he began to lose meters about two kilometers from the top of the Tourmalet. Without teammates by his side, with Sepp Kuss unable to accompany him at the decisive moment and Matteo Jorgenson dropped off much earlier than expected, the Visma leader ended up giving up 2:38 at the finish line.

Behind it was another race. The young Frenchman Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM Team), who is undoubtedly the great hope of the Gauls for the present and immediate future, went alone after the two roosters for a good part of the ascent to the Tourmalet, although he was caught before facing the final climb towards Gavarnie-Gèdre, where a small group of favorites once again formed.

In that group, the Mexican Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) stood out, who launched the sprint to take third place, just 19 seconds behind Vingegaard, while the Spanish Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek) once again put in a solid performance to cross the finish line seventh, controlling the differences with the main contenders and remaining fully installed in the fight for the places of honor in the general classification.

He also highlighted the resistance of riders such as Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), his teammate Florian Lipowitz (Lidl-Trek) and Seixas himself, all of them capable of minimizing damage after the devastating attack of the world champion, although none could dispute the superiority exhibited by Pogacar on the queen day of these first stages of the Tour. Everything indicates that his fight will be to snatch second place from Vingegaard.

After the Pogacar exhibition, the general classification is completely revolutionized. Pogacar regains the yellow jersey with a 2:42 advantage over Vingegaard, while his teammate Isaac del Toro rises to third place, now 3:27 behind. Remco Evenepoel is fourth, 3:30 behind, and the Spanish Juan Ayuso is fifth, 3:34 behind, fully established among the contenders for the podium and with just 7 seconds behind the Belgian. Paul Seixas is sixth, at 3:55, and Florian Lipowitz, seventh, at 4:00 minutes.

The stage was also cruel for Træen. The Norwegian had already virtually lost the lead during the ascent of the Tourmalet when he suffered a fall on the descent that aggravated his situation even more. After spending several minutes being attended to by medical services, he was able to resume walking, although he once again needed assistance on the bicycle, saying goodbye to the yellow jersey in the worst possible way.

The Tour will now face three days with a very different profile. This Friday the seventh stage, between Hagetmau and Bordeaux, presents a practically flat route favorable for a breakaway with options or, more likely, for a massive sprint. On Saturday, a very similar script will be repeated between Périgueux and Bergerac, while on Sunday there will be a medium-mountain stage between Malemort and Ussel, with four scoring climbs, including one of the second category, which could offer new movements before the big mountain returns.