Pogačar dominates (again) to take fourth stage win, Del Toro battles back to take second on stage 14
CyclingSunday, 19 July 2026 at 08:47
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Follow us on GoogleThe fourteenth stage of the Tour de France was won by Tadej Pogacar. The Slovenian from UAE Team Emirates-XRG accelerated just below the summit of the final climb and left his rivals behind. He claimed his fourth stage victory in Le Markstein; Isaac Del Toro completed the celebration with second place, ahead of Paul Seixas and Jonas Vingegaard.
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The riders started in Mulhouse, not far from the tri-border area of France, Switzerland, and Germany. In fact, Mulhouse even shares an airport with Freiburg (Germany) and Basel in Switzerland. We won’t be heading there now, though, because a grueling stage through the Vosges awaits the riders.
There are plenty of climbs along the route, but the toughest part comes at the end. The Col du Haag starts off steep with a 3.9-kilometer stretch at a 9.1 percent gradient, followed by a short descent. After that, the climb gradually steepens again, with a final 1.6 kilometers at a gradient of more than 10 percent.
At the top of the climb, which has an average gradient of 7.3 percent over 11.2 kilometers, there are still seven kilometers to go to Le Markstein. We’ve reached that point once before in the Tour de France, in 2023. Tadej Pogacar won that stage, after having definitively lost the Tour de France to Jonas Vingegaard a few days earlier.
Another large leading group
It was pouring with rain at the start. This meant that the attackers held back at kilometre zero, although the approaching intermediate sprint also played a part in this. After twelve kilometres, Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) beat green jersey wearer Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), thereby gaining five points in the sprinters’ classification.
After that, the attacks began on the early sections of the Grand Ballon. EF Education-EasyPost were raring to go and caused a significant split in the peloton. Once the dust had settled, we saw a large group at the front, featuring names such as Thymen Arensman, Egan Bernal (Netcompany INEOS), Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility), Richard Carapaz (EF), Valentin Paret-Peintre (Soudal Quick-Step), as well as Tom Pidcock.
The Brit from Pinarello - Q36.5 had already made up over seven minutes in the standings the previous day and was in fourth place, but he made another attempt to move up. This caused UAE Team Emirates-XRG to keep the line tight, much to the displeasure of some of the breakaway riders. After a mountain sprint won by Paret-Peintre, he and Carapaz rode hard.
Bad luck sees Arensman distanced from the leading group
They were soon joined by Tobias and Halland Anders Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) and Ben Healy. This meant that EF Education, like the Norwegian team, had two riders at the front. Behind them, Arensman was still trying to move up. He received help from Einer Rubio and Pablo Castrillo of Movistar. Just as they were closing in, however, the Dutchman suffered a mechanical problem.
Castrillo dropped Rubio off with the leading group, but Arensman had to chase. In the end, he didn’t make it. Meanwhile, the leading group began the ascent of the Ballon d’Alsace, the decisive climb of the thirteenth stage.
He put his team to work hard, with Tim Wellens and Felix Grossschartner pushing on the front of the small peloton. This ensured that the Pidcock group, which also included Arensman, was caught. Only the six leaders remained, and they saw their lead shrink steadily, even though Carapaz and Johannessen both had a domestique with them.
Decathlon puts Pogacar under pressure on the final climb
UAE brought the peloton close to the leaders. Domestiques Healy and Johannessen had done their job there, and so four climbers set off up the final col. But the peloton had already closed the gap to within a minute: Tiesj Benoot (Decathlon CMA CGM) put in a tremendous effort for team leader Paul Seixas. As a result, Pidcock dropped back, but riders such as Jai Hindley and Adam Yates also had to let go.
Carapaz proved to be the strongest in the leading group, but soon felt the favourites breathing down his neck. Sepp Kuss took over the work for Vingegaard. Pogacar’s expected attack failed to materialise, and the race leader climbed just as fast as the domestiques in the favourites’ group. His hopes grew with every kilometre, but when Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) accelerated, the pace picked up slightly. Seixas slipped in behind him.
Kuss closed the gap with every fibre of his being, after which Vingegaard made his move. It wasn’t a blistering acceleration, but a steady pace, as we’ve come to expect. Pogacar was on his wheel, but so were the rest of the top favourites. However, the Dane’s stranglehold soon signalled the end of the road for Remco Evenepoel. He had to drop back a few metres, whilst Del Toro was also struggling.
Pogacar accelerates, Vingegaard gives chase
The efforts of the mountains jersey wearer meant that Carapaz’s lead – who was once again joined by Johannessen – vanished like snow in the sun. The final kilometres of the climb were the steepest. That’s where the leaders were caught, after which Pogacar accelerated. His rivals failed to respond: everyone stayed on Vingegaard’s wheel, except for Del Toro, who dropped back.
The yellow jersey wearer was away on his own, but his Danish rival had also left his fellow pursuers behind. Pogacar was the first to reach the summit, whilst Seixas rejoined Vingegaard. That pair reached the summit some twenty seconds behind the leader, whilst Del Toro also joined them. Ayuso and Lipowitz were joined by the returning Evenepoel.
The final kilometres were undulating towards the finish, playing right into the world champion’s hands. He gained more and more time, crossing the line alone to claim his fourth stage victory in this Tour. Behind him, Del Toro won the sprint for second place, 38 seconds behind. Seixas finished second, Vingegaard fourth: Evenepoel and his group closed the gap but lost a little more time.
Results of Stage 14 of the 2026 Tour de France
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David Bavin-HobbsChief Editor
David has been working in the sports & cycling industry for 16 years. Covering racing, business and technology, he has worked in communications for cycling companies, teams, and as a journalist. His proudest achievement is winning the first bike race he ever entered. He hasn't won a race since.
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Latest Comments
- - Grande tristezza. Jonas estaba volando, poi caduta assurda. Forza per il recupero!sprocketspiny19-07-2026
- - Slightly harsh take here, but roundabout awareness should be drilled. These French road features have decided GC battles before. Feels like the piece glosses over whether positioning or recon played a role.cyclechamp4519-07-2026
- - Brutal. You could see Visma were setting the table for a long-range move on Solaison, and then one slick line through the roundabout ended it. Heartbreaking for Jonas and the race.michael5419-07-2026
- - I’m a bit confused—how can a “protest” against a night test not be a valid defense later? If UCI oversteps, shouldn’t that matter in a case? Seems dodgy.velodromevirtuoso119-07-2026
- - Pogacar on 5 hours sleep then blasting a mountain stage after coffee and Eminem—legend stuff. But ethically, questa cosa è pazzesca. Respect the riders’ rest, por favor.bikebuffj19-07-2026
- - Can someone explain why only Vingegaard and Pogacar were tested at night? If there’s suspicion, shouldn’t you test more riders, not just the top two? Sounds selective.samanthak19-07-2026
- - Feels wrong. Recovery is sacred between back-to-back mountain stages. Waking Vinge at 2 a.m. and Pogi at 5 a.m.? That’s borderline sabotage, even if technically legal.julien19-07-2026
- - Great reporting. The UCI’s Article2 and2 bits are key here—night tests only with “serious and specific suspicion.” If they woke both GC leaders, they’d better have rock-solid grounds. Still, both guys started Stage 15 strong, so maybe minimal performance impact.tourdeforce919-07-2026
- - Grande etapa! Pogacar otra vez imbatible, pero respeto a Jonas por no rendirse. Vamos Tour!patriciaw19-07-2026
- - Pog is inevitable right now. Visma’s “road to recovery” is real, though. If they can keep this momentum, third week could be spicy.jeremya19-07-2026
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