While Pogacar was left isolated, Visma | Lease a Bike strategically played the Jorgenson card: “His team is showing cracks”

Pogacar had already lost João Almeida in the first week due to a crash, and on stage 10, Pavel Sivakov couldn’t continue due to illness. “Pavel had a rough night. We decided to give him a rest day so he wouldn’t push too hard, and so he can be back at 100% in the Pyrenees,” team director Joxean Matxin told HLN.

As a result, Pogacar was left with only Adam Yates and Marc Soler. Soler got dropped, and Yates could only hang on at the back of the group during the final part of the stage. Vingegaard, on the other hand, had not only Jorgenson and Kuss with him, but also eventual stage winner Simon Yates and Victor Campenaerts up the road in the early break. Still, the Dutch team did little more than apply pressure.

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Kuss briefly upped the pace, and Jorgenson tried to attack several times. “Because of the headwind, it was tough to make a difference, but Matteo is very important to us. We’re using him in every way we can,” said sports director Arthur van Dongen. The finale wasn’t hard enough for Vingegaard to launch his own attack, but the Dane did stay right on Pogacar’s wheel, who put in one sharp acceleration.

Ideally, Visma | Lease a Bike had hoped UAE Team Emirates would spend all day chasing a break containing Visma riders. They didn’t. Pogacar also responded to every move with ease. “It’s clear his team is showing cracks, but if he’s strong enough to handle everything on his own, then for now, there’s not much we can do with that,” said Visma's Grischa Niermann.