Pogacar proves too strong for Vingegaard and van der Poel in exciting opening stage of Dauphiné

All eyes in the Dauphiné were on the impressive field of participants. With Jonas Vingegaard, Tadej Pogacar, and Remco Evenepoel at the start, a fierce battle for the overall victory was expected. Still, with other contenders such as Lenny Martinez, Ben Healy, Jonathan Milan, and Mathieu van der Poel also in the mix, it was set to be a thrilling race from the start. After a wrist injury, Van der Poel returned to racing, and the first stage seemed to suit him perfectly.

The riders set off from Domérat in the morning for the opening stage. Racing in France naturally means French baroudeurs: two Frenchmen managed to break away from the start. Pierre Thierry (Arkéa - B&B Hotels) embarked on an adventure with Paul Ourselin (Cofidis). No one else was interested in a long day at the front, so the pair quickly built up a substantial lead.

The riders knew that the last 50 kilometers would bring some nasty hills, so it remained quiet in the peloton, apart from a bad crash by Hugo Toumire. The Frenchman from Cofidis hit the asphalt hard and had to abandon the race. Meanwhile, his compatriots at the front lost more and more ground. For Ourselin, it was quickly over: only Thierry was left, and his lead disappeared in no time. On the Côte de Buffon, the final sprint began with the first acceleration from the peloton.

It was Ben Healy who made the first move, followed by his teammate and compatriot Archie Ryan. Pogacar reacted immediately, and Vingegaard followed close behind. Van der Poel also joined the front group. The game was on, but it was Fred Wright who successfully countered. The British rider from Bahrain Victorious closed the gap to the lone front runner, after which the peloton fell silent again. Wright and Thierry crossed the line with a 35-second lead, with around 30 kilometers to go.

The brave Thierry managed to stay with his breakaway companion for a while, but with 23 kilometers to go, it was up to Wright himself. Despite the challenging course, Lidl-Trek saw good opportunities for Jonathan Milan, so the gap was small. Only on the final climb was the solo leader caught by the pack, after which Axel Laurance (INEOS Grenadiers) was the first to attack the Côte de Buffon. The rest of the favorites could follow, after which Lukas Nerurkar (EF Education - EasyPost) opened up a gap at the top.

Matteo Jorgenson wanted to close the gap, and Van der Poel jumped with him. Vingegaard and Pogacar followed steadily, but there was no teamwork. Maxim Van Gils made a move, but it was Vingegaard himself who launched an attack. Pogacar and Van der Poel reacted immediately, but a little later, Evenepoel, together with Santiago Buitrago, was also able to make the connection. They didn't have much of a lead, but Visma | Lease a Bike did an excellent job of blocking behind them.

The five in front found a way to work together but didn't get more than 5 seconds. The strongest were at the front, but the peloton was close behind. A moment of hesitation would be fatal. The peloton closed in during the final few hundred meters, where van der Poel was the first to launch the sprint. That was just too early, and Pogacar overtook him. The world champion won the spectacular first stage ahead of Vingegaard, who also managed to get past the Dutchman.