Tim Wellens explains what keeps Tadej Pogačar grounded: ‘Confidence, but no arrogance’
CyclingFriday, 10 July 2026 at 18:11
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Follow us on GoogleTadej Pogačar is flying higher than ever and, for now, considerably faster than everyone else at the Tour de France. The Slovenian world champion and UAE Team Emirates-XRG leader is making his dominance look remarkably easy. His teammate Tim Wellens has had a front-row seat. Speaking to IDL Pro Cycling after his stage victory, the Belgian discussed UAE’s successful plan for the Tourmalet, Pogačar’s immense confidence and the attitude the world champion maintains both on and off the bike.
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Tim, congratulations on the stage victory. I would also like to start a petition for you to wear the Belgian champion’s jersey for the rest of your career, because seeing you back in the UAE jersey will take some getting used to...
“Thank you! Haha, I’m disappointed that I’m no longer wearing the Belgian colours as well. My life isn’t the same without that jersey. Now, when my teammate Rune rides around in it — Rune Herregodts, the newly crowned Belgian champion — everyone jokingly tells me that it’s me.”
Moving on to the Tour de France. Before the stage over the Tourmalet, your team boss Joxean Matxin told me that UAE would primarily watch Jonas Vingegaard and that the final climb might offer an opportunity for Pogačar. We can probably say there was another plan, can’t we?
“It was clear that this was an important day for us. We had marked it out beforehand, and it was the team’s first major objective. We spoke about it a lot on the bus, and everyone was extremely motivated. “We wanted to turn the stage into an expedition, and that is exactly what we managed to do. You don’t say something like that in advance, but now that it has worked, I can admit that we were already joking about it beforehand.”
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So Tadej Pogacar did, in fact, attack on the Tourmalet!
Wellens keeps Pogačar and UAE grounded
At the Tour de Suisse, you described Tadej Pogačar as “a great person.” We perhaps saw an example of that after Stage 6, during his conversation with Isaac del Toro on the rollers. Del Toro was proud of his effort on the Tourmalet, but Pogačar told him that he had actually gone too fast — both for himself and for Del Toro. Pogačar is clearly full of confidence, but he always appears to keep sight of reality. How have you seen that during this Tour?
“Especially on the bike, Tadej has an enormous amount of confidence. He knows from training how good he is because he breaks every record there. “Thanks to our altitude training camp in Sierra Nevada, we already knew that he was in excellent shape. Of course, he knows that himself as well. During the race, he will feel it too.”
During a stage like that, Pogačar gives the impression that he knows he is better than everyone else. How do you view that?
“That is confidence, but it isn’t arrogance. When the cameras aren’t around, Tadej or someone else within the team will occasionally say certain things, but that is mostly for a laugh. “We have to keep both feet on the ground. Everyone within the team understands that and handles it well.”
I think I know the answer, but I am going to ask anyway: has the Tour de France already been decided?
“That is the major danger: everyone starting to think everything is under control and that the Tour de France is already finished. “We cannot become too relaxed. The truly difficult stages are still to come. Tadej was the strongest rider and still is the strongest rider, but it is dangerous to say that the Tour has already been decided. “I’m not going along with that.”
Bram van der PloegEditor-in-chief
Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.
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Latest Comments
- No teammates on the Tourmalet. Too fast up the Tourmalet.
merganzer10-07-2026 - Reef is whistling past the graveyard by denying what was plain to see: Tadej crushed Jonas, beating him in the ascent and, even more decisively on the descent, where most of the gap was created. In the world of reality, rather than the fantsay that Reef related, Jonas will not become a better descender between now and Paris, and Tadej won't get less adept at the skill. Moreover, it wasn't only about the mano y mono, between the two Tour leaders, but the unraveling of Visma, and the dominance of UAE, especially IDT. Barring injury or some other anomalous occurrence, we'll look back at Tadej's win on stage six as the day he won the 2026 TDF.rjb10-07-2026
- Remco continues alternating between Dr. Jekyl and, as he did today post-race, Mr. Hyde, lashing out as others for not racing according to his preferences. This isn't the first time he's complained about opponents' tactics, but it's the first time I've heard him do it to a teammate, and that lack of discretion and team loyalty may come back to haunt him. I though he'd outgrown these childish pouts; obviously, I was mistaken.rjb10-07-2026
- - How many times has Pog actually worn yellow now? The article hints he’s lost count—anyone got the exact stat?robert6506-07-2026
- - Unreal start to the Tour: two punches in three days. If he’s taking yellow this early, the real game is load management before the first true summit finish.davidm06-07-2026
- - Grandissimo Tadej! Maillot jaune meritato, squadra perfetta oggi.sprocketspiny06-07-2026
- - Not sure I buy the “nothing really tough” description. 3,850m of climbing in that heat is brutal, even if the gradients aren’t HC. Felt a bit dismissive.cadencekingm06-07-2026
- - Pogacar’s humour about the gels was gold. Also, nice to see him credit Del Toro. That Barcelona gesture coming back today was a proper team arc.michael5406-07-2026
- - Quick question: when they say “break got a free pass” by Visma, does that mean Visma just stopped chasing completely? Or is it more like they eased but still controlled the gap?velodromevirtuoso106-07-2026
- - Sorry, but the piece glosses over how Vermeersch shredded the gap. That was the hinge of the stage. Give him more credit than a single line.raceready706-07-2026
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