Tour de France Stage 3: Pogačar Blasts into Yellow as Del Toro Repays Gift

Tadej Pogačar wasn’t giving any gifts on stage 3 of the Tour de France.

The defending Tour de France champion launched a blistering uphill sprint and landed in the yellow jersey on Monday after a leadout by his teammate Isaac Del Toro.

Jonas Vingegaard was left choking in Pogi’s exhaust and came to the line two seconds back after the 1.7km hilltop kick to Les Angles.

The result put Pogačar back into the yellow jersey he last wore in Paris last summer on countback after he and Vingegaard finished the day level on GC time.

The Pogačar-Del Toro bromance was evident when the Slovenian gave his winner’s interview.

“It’s because of Isaac today, I got extra power in the final,” he laughed, gesturing to Del Toro off-camera. “He committed more than 100 percent in the final climb.

“In the middle of the stage, we decided it was possible to go for the stage win, and I’m really happy that we started the Tour like this,” Pogačar continued.

“It was an incredible finish today.”

Sepp Kuss had led the reduced GC bunch into the hilltop finish of stage 3 for Vingegaard, but Del Toro wrestled away control and paced the group into the final 500m.

From there, a UAE victory looked inevitable in scenes similar to the team’s 1-2 masterclass on stage 2.

But unlike on Sunday where Del Toro was “allowed” to see his leadout through to the line, Pogačar launched an unmatchable sprint for his 22nd Tour de France stage win.

Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) and Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) came in on time with Vingegaard to take 3rd and 4th after Pogačar’s uphill assault.

Del Toro, Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek) and Red Bull duo Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz finished two seconds later.

Pogačar and Vingegaard switched spots in the top-2 of the classification while the remainder of the top-6 remained unchanged.

Pogačar: ‘To take yellow is a dream for any cyclist’

UAE Emirates-XRG finished the stage with two wins in a row, the yellow jersey, and all the momentum.

Pogačar suggested this might just be the start.

“Of course, to take yellow is a dream for any cyclist of any age,” he said at the finish. “For me, every time I can get it on my shoulders, it feels special. I don’t know how long this will last, but I try to enjoy every moment.”

Pogačar was so unflustered after his uphill sprint that he was even lucid enough to crack a joke after being asked about his cannibalistic hunger for wins.

“I’m not so hungry, I eat a gel every 30 minutes,” he said.

Stage 3: Hot, uphill, hard

Monday’s stage was a sufferfest.

The peloton raced over the Spanish border and into the French Pyrénées on a 196km course that pointed uphill almost all day. The majority of the 4,000m of ascent sprawled across a succession of big-ring climbs in the final 100km.

And the parcours might have been the least of the peloton’s problems as the Tour races through a European heatwave. Temperatures averaged more than 30 degrees C throughout a stage partially closed to the public due to ongoing wildfires.

The breakaway specialists liked what they saw in the rugged parcours amid rumors Vingegaard hoped to give away his yellow jersey.

A superstar group of more than a dozen riders split away after 60km of racing and got a sizable gap.

But UAE Emirates-XRG had other plans.

Pogačar wanted the win after he gifted glory to Del Toro on stage 2, and the UAE super team hammered on the front for most of the day.

Last breakaway rider standing Alex Baudin (EF Education-EasyPost) succumbed to the UAE pain train at around 13km to go, just as the bunch braced for the final uphill grind to the line.

Also, spare a thought for Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Intermarché) on Monday night.

The sickly sprinter was in a fight for survival on his own at the back for hours while the broom wagon sat on his wheel. He eventually abandoned as health woes continue to torpedo his career.

Another chance for the break on stage 4?

Stage 4 on Tuesday is the first all-French day of Le Tour. The 182km medium mountain stage across the foothills of the Pyrénées should offer breakaway hopefuls another chance at glory – if Pogačar allows it.

You can find out all you need to know about stage 4 into Foix in our preview, here.

Tour de France stage 3 results