Matteo Jorgenson predicts when Visma | Lease a Bike will go “all-out” against Tadej Pogacar

Stage winner Tadej Pogacar, despite his victory, was left with a bitter feeling after the stage finish in Brittany, as the injured Almeida came in ten minutes down. The winner of the Tours of the Basque Country, Romandie, and Switzerland will no longer be a card to play in the mountains.

Jorgenson, however, still is for Visma | Lease a Bike. The American, who sits sixth overall, reflected in the French heat after seven days. “It’s been stressful every day, so in a way it’s nice that this weekend we have two sprint stages that should be a bit calmer. Monday will be an all-out test, just before the rest day,” he said, looking ahead to the stage to Puy de Sancy.

The fact that he and his team made it through this hectic first week unscathed is already a victory, according to Jorgenson. “We couldn’t ask for more. No one has crashed and physically we’re all feeling good, so it’s nice that we’ve gotten through the first week as a team like this. That’s something we’ve actually never managed before.”

In the punchy stage to Mur-de-Bretagne, there was once again little anyone could do against Pogacar, Jorgenson also observed. “I had to sit down and raise the white flag. We just had to push as hard as we could. On climbs like this, there isn’t much strategy involved. You always hope to beat him, but there was nothing we could do. Pogacar has an unbeatable sprint; this is really his terrain.”

Last year, Vingegaard was 1 minute and 15 seconds behind Pogacar after seven stages, and now the gap is 1 minute and 17 seconds. Jorgenson himself is much closer: whereas last year he was four minutes down after the first week, now he’s only a minute and a half behind. That’s a good reflection of the reality, says the American. “I definitely feel better than last year.”