Breakaway specialist Frigo reaches honest Tour de France conclusion: ‘That demotivates me’

The 2026 Tour de France was dominated by cycling’s biggest names. Tadej Pogačar, Isaac Del Toro, Remco Evenepoel, Mathieu van der Poel and Richard Carapaz were among the stars who claimed stage victories. A natural breakaway specialist such as Marco Frigo of NSN Cycling Team could not add his name to that list, something the Italian admitted was difficult to accept. Speaking to Bici, he delivered a revealing assessment of his race.

Frigo started the Tour with a clear plan to take each opportunity as it came. “From the first week onwards, I approached it day by day. There were stages when discouragement took over because my physical condition was not at its best. On other days, however, I felt better. The pace was extremely high every day. You always have to be fully alert, and there may have been moments when I was not ready.”

The Italian discovered that the Tour de France was a very different proposition from the other Grand Tours he had ridden. “Before the Tour, people had warned me a little. I was quite skeptical and thought: ‘What can it really be? In the end, it is just a bike race.’ Instead, I realized that you encounter a completely different kind of cycling here.”

That realization was mainly caused by the extraordinarily high standard of racing. “During the second week, we recorded some frightening average speeds. That was also the case on Plateau de Solaison, in a stage containing 4,000 meters of climbing, where the winner still averaged 42 kilometers per hour,” Frigo explained.

Nevertheless, the NSN rider believes completing the Tour changes a cyclist and can provide valuable confidence. “After this Tour de France, I can say that I have now experienced everything in cycling. It gives me the awareness that my level is good and that racing in certain events is not impossible.” Frigo will carry that knowledge into the next part of his career and into any future appearances at the Tour.

As he did throughout this Tour, he intends to keep giving everything in pursuit of victory. However, Frigo also understands that physical strength remains decisive. “The legs are still the foundation for winning at the Tour de France. We saw the riders who won, and they were all in exceptional form on a special day. That said, in the stage where I came close to fighting for victory, I may have made a mistake with my timing.” Frigo finished fourth on Stage 4 to Foix, where Mads Pedersen took the victory.

That was one of the limited opportunities Frigo received, because genuine chances are scarce at the Tour. “With such a high overall level, you have to bring many things together to stand out: you must have the right legs on the right day, make the correct breakaway and move at exactly the right moment.” According to Frigo, the speed of the race also leaves riders with far less room to correct mistakes. “In fact, I would say there is almost no margin. If you get your positioning wrong on a climb, it is not like another race where you can put it right with your legs.”

There may be exceptions, but only among the very strongest riders in the peloton. “Perhaps the best riders can still do it, but we are talking about five or six riders.” In Frigo’s view, that small group is operating at a level far above most of the field. Even so, the gap has not discouraged him from continuing to improve. “It is a race that motivates me to grow and keep working.”

That work will probably need to focus on a more specific type of stage. “The performance level in the mountains is so high that it is a little demoralizing. Having said that, we have obviously seen that you need to be a climber if you want to win uphill. At the Tour de France, a rider like me should therefore probably concentrate on more achievable stages, such as the ones to Foix or Voiron.”