Pogacar criticizes Visma | Lease a Bike's tactics: "They underestimated the others"

Yellow jersey wearer Tadej Pogacar was closely marked in the ninth stage of the Tour de France, which featured a large portion of gravel, by the team of Visma | Lease a Bike. However, Jonas Vingegaard and Matteo Jorgenson refused to assist the Slovenian, which seemed to cause some irritation to the leader of UAE-Team Emirates afterwards.

In the flash interview afterwards, Vingegaard addressed the tactics of the Dutch team. "Visma | Lease a Bike focused only on me, but by doing that, they underestimated the others. I think they might have to pay the price for that later."

Vingegaard did not wish to ride with his Slovenian opponent at any point. "We could have taken time and consolidated the podium, but they didn't want to. This way, they put all the emphasis on me," said Pogacar. "Is Vingegaard afraid of me? I think so, because otherwise he would have taken over and not just followed my wheel, but also that of the others."

Pogacar tries not to worry about it. "Everyone rides their own race, so it doesn't bother me. I just love to race with my heart, and today was a perfect day to do that," he said after the gravel stage in Troyes, where he couldn't gain time on his main rivals.

Pogacar speaks of underestimation at Visma | Lease a Bike

Similar sentiments were expressed at the press conference, where IDLProCycling.com was also present. "It wasn't quite what I expected, but I really think they underestimated Primoz and the other outsiders," he emphasized regarding the race plan of the killer bees. "Jonas seems to be mainly focused on me, but those other guys are also very strong. It was their choice, but it was quite noticeable."

"I tried several times to make a gap, but it didn't work out. Unfortunately, but that's also part of it," the hungry rider from Komenda also realistically noted. "In such hectic stages, it's always a question of whether you'll get through well, but for me, it certainly was. You can easily lose the Tour on a day like this, usually due to bad luck."

So, Pogacar was also 'simply' glad to have come through the stage unscathed. "It was an incredibly fast stage. There was a lot happening right from the start, even before the first sector. The pace remained very high throughout. The race was therefore super tough. It felt a bit like a classic. In the end, it was more or less as I expected it to go. I do enjoy such a race unfolding. And of course, I'm also a fan of gravel."