Three years ago, Tadej Pogačar won atop Le Markstein at the end of a brutal Tour de France for him. The stage 20 win, sprinting to the line ahead of yellow jersey Jonas Vingegaard, was an act of defiance, two fingers up to those who thought the age of Pogačar was already over, a reminder of his power. He lost that Tour by well over seven minutes, but his 11th stage win set the scene for what to come.
Three years on, the UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider won atop Le Markstein again, this time at the end of stage 14. This time, there was no loss of face to make up for, or scores to be settled. No, this time in the Vosges, Pogačar proved again that he will win this race, without misfortune getting in the way. For the third year running, it looks like the Slovenian will vanquish Vingegaard by minutes.
