Stage 17 report
Time to sign off; I’ll leave you with Jeremy Whittle’s report from Peyragudes. Thanks for joining me, it’s been real. Until next time ...
Here is Thursday’s stage – the final day in the Pyrenees, and probably the last chance for Pogacar to wrestle the yellow jersey back from Vingegaard. Three titanic climbs, and another summit finish at Hautacam. Better get some rest, lads.
General classification after stage 17
- J Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) 67h 53m 54s
- T Pogacar (UAE-Team Emirates) +2m 18s
- G Thomas (Ineos) +4m 56s
- N Quintana (Arkea-Samsic) +7m 53s
- D Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) +7m 57s
- R Bardet (DSM) +9m 21s
- L Meintjes (Intermarché) +9m 24s
- A Vlasov (Bora-Hansgrohe) +9m 56s
- A Yates (Ineos) +14m 33s
- E Mas (Movistar) +16m 35s
Here’s Tadej Pogacar: “To take the stage win is incredible – the way we rode today with four (riders), without Rafal (Majka). I felt so good with the pace, Brandon (McNulty) and Mikkel (Bjerg) were so great today.
“Tomorrow, we’ll see if we can do more – but I’m happy for today to have won. I gave absolutely everything, to the line.”
Stage 17 result
- T Pogacar (UAE-Team Emirates) 3h 25m 51s
- J Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) st
- B McNulty (UAE-Team Emirates) +32s
- G Thomas (Ineos) +2m 7s
- A Lutsenko (Astana) +2m 34s
- R Bardet (DSM) +2m 38s
- D Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) +3m 27s
- A Vlasov (Bora-Hansgrohe) +3m 32s
- L Meintjes (Intermarché) st
- N Quintana (Arkea-Samsic) st
“I didn’t feel quite as light on the pedals as on other days,” says Geraint Thomas. “I didn’t want to go into the red (to stay with the leading trio), so I decided to sit back and avoid blowing up on the final climb.”
The former Tour winner is still on course for the podium, but he ends the day almost five minutes behind Vingegaard in the battle for the overall title. It’s appropriate that tomorrow’s stage starts in Lourdes, because G now needs a miracle.
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“Pleased to see Pogacar riding up the Peyragudes climb on the big chain ring,” notes Paul Griffin. “Exactly how I would approach an 8km, 8% climb, two-and-a-half weeks into a grand tour. My training plans are available on Bebo, fax and nailed to good quality lamp posts.”
Wow, that was something else. Absolutely superhuman from both riders. I’m exhausted just watching. Brandon McNulty comes home in third place, Geraint Thomas in fourth. With Romain Bardet running out of steam, Alexey Lutsenko comes home in fifth place.
Pogacar wins stage 17 but Vingegaard holds on to GC lead!
Jonas Vingegaard kicks for home first, and Pogacar responds – the two GC leaders are in an uphill sprint for the line! It’s the defending champion who prevails, getting back ahead of his rival just before the line. A psychological boost for Pogacar, but aside from the loss of four bonus seconds, Vingegaard has done enough today.
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250m to go: McNulty finally drops off and Pogacar pushes for home – but both leaders look like they’re moving in slow motion on this brutal final stretch ...
500km to go: Pogacar doesn’t seem to have a final burst in him – and the GC battle won’t be settled today. But who fancies the stage win?
1km to go: It’s 16% gradient all the way to the line, and the leading trio grit their teeth and keep rolling. Vingegaard decides to move in between the Team Emirates duo – will he make a late charge or is it just mind games?
1.5km to go: McNulty keeps hauling and Vingegaard looks tired – but does Pogacar have a late burst in him to shake his shadow off?
2km to go: Thomas has opened a slight gap over Bardet. But never mind that – what’s happening up the road? Still no big move from Pogacar, who still looks so fresh, particularly compared to some of the heavyweight names labouring further down the climb.
3km to go: McNulty looks a broken man at the front of this leading trio. Pogacar is up on his heels, looking back and front. The gradient is about to hit 16% ... it’s crunch time.
4km to go: The virtual GC has Thomas more than four minutes behind Vingegaard, with Quintana and Gaudu in the top five, but now more than seven minutes back. The gap between the race leader and Pogacar is 2min 22sec; if the Slovenian can even make a dent in that, he’ll see that as a good result.
5km to go: The crowds are getting bigger, the bends getting tighter, the road getting steeper. Vingegaard is still looking comfortable in behind Pogacar, though, only lifting briefly out of his saddle. The pace is around 15km/h; the gap to Thomas and Bardet has grown to 1min 25sec.
6km to go: Brandon McNulty is still hauling the two title rivals up this final climb. It’s very much a waiting game until the defending champion makes his move.
7km to go: With Pogacar still being relentlessly shadowed by Vingegaard up ahead, we get a look at the chasers – and Romain Bardet has found a second wind. He pulls clear of that quintet, joined by Geraint Thomas. The two men have a quick word – presumably ready to work together to keep the top two in sight.
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8km to go: Bardet and Leknessund have worked together to rally and join Thomas, Lutsenko and Vingegaard’s Jumbo-Visma teammate, Sepp Kuss. They’re still more than a minute behind the leaders, who are racing up the gentle start of this climb as if it were downhill.
The final climb: Here we go, then. McNulty is still here helping out his UAE teammate, but make no mistake – this will be Vin v Pog, for the stage win and quite possibly the destiny of the yellow jersey.
There are 10km to go, all uphill – but it’s the final 2.5km at a brutal 16% gradient that could be crucial. Have a look!
⛰ Last climb of the day: here is the 3D profile of Peyragudes
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 20, 2022
⛰ Dernière ascension du jour, voici le profil 3D de l'ascension vers Peyragudes !#TDF2022 pic.twitter.com/Da3Gh1fdYC
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12km to go: The leading trio lead Geraint Thomas and his fellow chasers by more than a minute, as we hit the valley floor and pass Lac Génos. A brief moment of serenity.
“The leaders are about to head through Loundenvielle, and then Loudervielle,” notes Martyn Lunn in more tourist-troubling scenes.
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18km to go: This descent will offer GC contenders faint hope of getting back into the race, but there are already big time gaps. Thomas is a minute behind, in a group with Lutsenko and Kuss; Quintana and Gaudu are almost five minutes behind the leaders.
Pogacar attacks! Within sight of the summit, Tadej Pogacar puts the hammer down. It’s the same tactic we saw yesterday, and again Vingegaard is able to hold him off. The stage and GC leaders begin the day’s final descent together.
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21km to go: This UAE-Team Emirates duo have absolutely laid waste to the field on this penultimate climb – but despite dropping his Jumbo-Visma support, Pogacar and McNulty have not shaken off Vingegaard yet. It looks like he’ll hang on to the peak here – but we’re set for a battle royale on the final ascent.
Stage finish set up for Vingegaard v Pogacar
Geraint Thomas is dropped! Is this the end of his faint hopes of GC glory? The former winner can’t live with the pace set by McNulty and Pogacar, with only Vingegaard hanging on. Leknessund is overtaken, and that imperious trio now lead the race.
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23km to go: The yellow jersey group is trimmed to four – with UAE’s McNulty sticking with the three race leaders. They have cruised past a back-pedalling Bardet, absorbed Uran and are rolling relentlessly towards the race leader, Leknessund. 3km to go until the top of the climb ...
24km to go: There are cracks emerging further up the road too, with a number of that leading group hitting a wall and getting hoovered up by Pogacar and co. DSM’s Andreas Leknessund has made what looks a doomed push for a solo breakaway, with EF’s Rigoberto Uran behind them.
25km to go: GC contenders falling away by the minute now – Nairo Quintana the latest to drop back. David Gaudu has been dropped, while teammate Thibaut Pinot has fallen away and has been overtaken by the yellow-jersey group. Only Geraint Thomas is sticking with Vingegaard and Pogacar, who still have lieutenants alongside them.
26km to go: The Category 1 Col de Val Louron-Azet looms ahead – it’s a 10.7km climb at a 6.8% gradient. In the small group of favourites, UAE Team-Emirates are putting on the pressure – and Wout van Aert can’t live with it. The green jersey slips back, and it’s advantage Pogacar ...
28km to go: Simon Geschke has been dropped by the leading group – I’m not sure if he had another mechanical issue – and he is being led back by teammate Pierre-Luc Perichon. They’re 30 seconds behind the leaders, with the yellow jersey group a further 30 seconds back. The slower pace has allowed Yates and Pidcock to rejoin that group as we hit the day’s third climb.
30km to go: It’s all over for Pinot and Lutsenko – they are swallowed up the chasing group, which now contains 16 riders:
Pinot (Groupama-FDJ), Lutsenko (Astana), Bardet, Hamilton and Leknessund (DSM), Van Baarle (Ineos), Uran (EF Education), Konrad (Bora-Hansgrohe), Mühlberger (Movistar), Teuns (Bahrain), Zimmermann (Intermarché), Simmons and Ciccone (Trek-Segafredo), Juul Jensen (BikeExchange-Jayco), Jungels (AG2R-Citroen), Castroviejo (Ineos).
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35km to go: We’re currently at the lowest point on the road between these four climbs; temperatures in the valleys are mid-20s, while it’s under 20 degrees on the upper mountain slopes. We have just whizzed past two adjacent towns, Guchen and Guchan. That must have tripped a few tourists up in the past.
The day’s final climb up to Peyragudes has plenty of Tour history – with happy memories for Romain Bardet and Chris Froome.
⛰ Stages to Peyragudes have always echoed in the history of the Tour!
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 20, 2022
🏆 From @alejanvalverde to @romainbardet, only skilled climbers have won there on the Tour!#TDF2022 pic.twitter.com/FytumIHMMC
38km to go: Eek, a wobbly moment for Pinot on the descent – it’s not his strong suit – with Lutsenko leading and looking more comfortable. The Bardet group have stabilised, now 30 seconds behind the leading duo and a minute clear of the GC contenders.
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KOM result at Horquette d’Anzican: That mechanical problem wasn’t too costly for Geschke, with Ciccone only picking up two points on the Cat 2 climb.
1. Thibaut Pinot, 5 pts
2. Alexey Lutsenko, 3 pts
3. Giulio Ciccone, 2 pts
4. Pierre-Luc Perichon, 1 pt
45km to go: The yellow jersey group are closing in on the group of chasers, moving at a pace that neither Tom Pidcock nor Adam Yates could handle. Yates began the day in sixth place overall, but he’s been left in the dust and is rapidly falling behind his rivals.
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47km to go: As the two leaders begin their second descent, a nightmare moment for Geschke, who needs a bike change within 1km of the summit. He misses out on a handful of very useful King of the Mountains points.
Horquette d’Anzican (Cat 2 summit) Pinot and Lutsenko have made their breakaway stick – they are now 45 seconds clear of the Bardet/Geschke group, who are looking over their shoulders with the peloton only 30 seconds behind. It’s the Frenchman who crosses the summit first.
@niallmcveigh Whilst long time followers of Pinot know that this break will almost certainly end in tears, it would be lovely to see him get a stomp on up the road and provide us with the thrilling heroics he so often aims (not always accurately) for.
— Andy H (@DoctorCuriosity) July 20, 2022
Indeed – and remember, France are still waiting for a home stage win on this year’s Tour. I hope my old mucker MaliciousA is watching.
50km to go: Cracks emerging in the group of heavyweights leading the peloton, with Tom Pidcock falling away. Tadej Pogacar’s team may be depleted, but they are setting the tempo through Mikkel Bjerg, followed by Van Aert and Vingegaard.
52km to go: We move on to the day’s second climb, the Category 2 Horquette d’Anzican. It’s shorter and less steep than the first climb, but has a fiendish double peak, with a short downhill section making it hard to find a rhythm.
KOM result at Col d’Aspin:
1. Thibaut Pinot, 10 pts
2. Alexey Lutsenko, 8 pts
3. Simon Geschke, 6 pts
4. Giulio Ciccone, 4 pts
5. Quinn Simmons, 2 pts
6. Chris Hamilton, 1 pt
55km to go: Before we hit the day’s second climb, the riders take a U-shaped detour around Lake Payolle. We’re in a valley known locally as “Little Canada” for its pine trees and relaxed vibe.
Pinot and Lutsenko still lead by 30 seconds, with the large chasing group a further 1min 20sec clear of the pack. Bardet has got across to that gap, along with Bob Jungels (AG2R) and Jonathan Castroviejo (Ineos).
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More cycling-public transport collabs: this is a great find.
@niallmcveigh not a transit station but a bus stop in a Hungarian town reportedly will be named after Cavendish after he changed a tire there during the Giro. Quite the honor! https://t.co/35IqAO2Twj
— Erwin Cifuentes (@ourlatinamerica) July 20, 2022
62km to go: The leading pair begin the first helter-skelter descent of the day. Simon Geschke was first among the chasers to reach the summit, further tightening his grip on the polka-dot jersey.
𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐃: Didi the Devil 😈#TDF2022 | @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/Kw0Suv0PDR
— Eurosport (@eurosport) July 20, 2022
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Col d’Aspin (cat 1) summit: Pinot crosses first, with Lutsenko in second. There are a group of 16 riders behind them, with Bardet and Bob Jungels among the riders trying to join that chasing pack. They are:
Daniel Martinez, Dylan van Baarle and Rigoberto Uran (EF Education), Patrick Konrad (Bora-Hansgrohe), Gregor Mühlberger and Carlos Verona (Movistar), Pierre-Luc Perichon and Simon Geschke (Cofidis), Dylan Teuns (Bahrain), Chris Hamilton and Andreas Leknessund (DSM), Georg Zimmermann (Intermarché-Wanty), Quinn Simmons and Giulio Ciccone (Trek-Segafredo), Chris Juul Jensen (BikeExchange-Jayco), Pierre Latour (TotalEnergies).
65km to go: Things are getting stretched now – Pinot and Lutsenko still lead by 23 seconds, with two separate chasing groups between them and the peloton. Romain Bardet, more than six minutes behind Vingegaard in the general classification, has also launched an attack from the main group. Meanwhile, a few stragglers are drifting off the back – it’ll be a long day for them from here.
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67km to go: We are 4km from the top of the Col d’Aspin, with Pinot and Lutsenko still hanging on in front, and that big chasing group now 30 seconds clear of the peloton. The man in polka dots, Simon Geschke, is among them, as is Rigoberto Urán.
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70km to go: Another pair of riders try to make a move – Thibaut Pinot and Alexey Lutsenko power up the road, followed by a group of chasers.
“The Victoria Line is named after Victoria Pendleton,” honks Kieran.
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72km to go: Owain Doull, an Olympic gold medallist on the track in 2016, was briefly out on his own as Boivin dropped back – but he is quickly caught and we’re back in one group, strung out along the foothills of this first climb.
“The jerseys are only as varied as the parcours,” notes Gary Naylor. “Sprinters need more opportunities next year and time trials need a bit more significance too.”
Robin Lynch points out that the green jersey hasn’t always been won by out-and-out sprinters. The roll of honour includes “all-rounders like Sean Kelly, Freddie Maertens, Jan Janssen, Tom Boonen and long-forgotten Belgian trundler Eddy Merckx.”
Which brings me to a different question: is Eddy Merckx the only cyclist to have a train or subway station dedicated to him?
76km to go: Just like that, we hit the day’s first categorised climb – the cat 1 Col d’Aspin. It’s a 12km slog to the summit, at a steady 6.5% gradient. The first 50km of road got covered inside an hour.
82km to go: A second two-man breakaway has formed – Welshman Owain Doull (EF-Education) and Canada’s Guillaume Boivin (Israel-Premier Tech). They have a 20-second lead over the pack.
At the back, Kevin Geniets (Groupama-FDJ) is a full minute off the pace while his fellow straggler, Fabio Felline (Astana), has abandoned the race.
Intermediate sprint result:
1. Jasper Philipsen, 20 pts
2. Wout van Aert, 17 pts
3. Michael Matthews, 15 pts
4. Nick Schultz, 13 pts
5. Alexander Krieger, 11 pts
6. Gregor Mühlberger, 10 pts
7. Simon Geschke, 9 pts
8. Filippo Ganna, 8 pts
9. Gorka Izagirre, 7 pts
10. Edward Planckaert, 6 pts
11. Alberto Bettiol, 5 pts
12. Guy Niv, 4 pts
13. Benjamin Thomas, 3 pts
14. Georg Zimmermann, 2 pts
15. Tom Pidcock, 1 pt
“The polka dot and green jerseys used to be for specialist climbers and sprinters who were no good at anything else,” says James Abbott. “What’s changed?”
I would put it down to the advent of the Tour’s superhuman all-rounders – your Van Aerts, your Sagans, your Alaphilippes. But let me know your thoughts, readers.
Wout van Aert wins green jersey race
We pass through the intermediate sprint in La Barthe-de-Neste, won by Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin). Wout Van Aert crosses just behind him, and the 17 points earned mean that he cannot be caught in the sprint competition. As long as he completes the Tour, he’ll be the green jersey winner.
98km to go: They’ve been moving at a fair old pace so far, with Vingegaard clocking around 50km/h. Van Aert was one of a quartet who moved across to the leading pair, but all the breakers have now been swallowed up.
“I’m pretty sure that when I was a kid, the polka dots on the KotM jersey were in offset vertical lines, rather than the parallel grid of today,” says Louise Wright. “Am I misremembering, and if I’m not, when did they change it?”
You certainly aren’t, Louise – it’s a relatively recent design change made in 2019 (as far as I can tell). Here’s the 2018 King, Julian Alaphilippe, wearing a more traditional polka-dot jersey.
106km to go: We have a mini-breakaway, with Dutchman Dylan van Baarle (Ineos) and Britain’s Connor Swift (Arkea-Samsic) carving out a 20-second gap. Plenty are pushing to try and join them, including Tom Pidcock, teammate of Van Baarle and compatriot of Swift.
112km to go: We’ve just left the Haute-Garonne region, crossing into Hautes-Pyrénées. The peloton are still in one piece, preparing to slalom through Aventignan, a village known for its cave paintings.
120km to go: There’s an edge to the early proceedings, the pack spread out across the road and watching closely for potential breakaways. Vingegaard in particular is staying very close to Pogacar, while Chris Froome is the latest rider to try and fail to eke out a small gap at the front.
It could be a big day in the race for the polka-dot jersey, the snazziest of all the jerseys. There are 35 points to be won over today’s four categorised climbs. Simon Geschke (Cofidis) is the current leader with 58 points, ahead of Louis Meintjes (Intermarché-Wanty) with 39 and Neilson Powless (EF Education-Easypost) with 37. Vingegaard is in fourth.
Allez!
After a ceremonial ride through Saint-Gaudens, the race is officially under way, with 130km to go on the road to Peyragudes.
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The yellow jersey wearer, Jonas Vingegaard, has spoken to Eurosport about Majka’s withdrawal, which may well weaken his rival further.
“It won’t change the way we race, I just think it’s a pity he’s out,” says Vingegaard. “He’s a man who can really make a difference in the race. I’m enjoying every day in yellow, just going to go out and do my best.”
Rafal Majka withdraws due to injury
Some potentially huge breaking news in the battle for the general classification. UAE-Team Emirates have announced that Tadej Pogacar’s mountain lieutenant, Rafal Majka, is out of the race due to a thigh injury.
“Majka sustained a strain injury to his thigh after some mechanical trouble on stage 16 when his chain broke,” said the team medical director, Dr Adrian Rotunno. “This resulted in a tear of his right quadriceps muscle, and unfortunately due to the muscle damage he is unable to ride.”
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Take a closer look at today’s stage, which has four categorised climbs. After a gently uphill first 50km, it’s pretty much non-stop rise and fall until the finish line, in temperatures of around 26-27 degrees.
Another difficult day on the roads of the #TDF2022 with a finish in Peyragudes that promises fireworks! ⛰
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 20, 2022
Une nouvelle journée difficile sur la route du #TDF2022 avec une arrivée à Peyragudes qui promet d'être mouvementée ! ⛰ pic.twitter.com/tB6D6pxfKR
Wout van Aert looks certain to end this year’s Tour with the green jersey – the big Belgian is 200 points clear of his rivals in the sprint competition. Van Aert was left visibly peeved on Tuesday when DSM rider Nils Eekhoff nicked in front of him at the intermediate sprint, despite having zero points in the green jersey race.
“Everyone has the right to sprint,” Van Aert told Eurosport after the stage. “I did tell Nils I would have appreciated it if he had said he wanted to sprint beforehand. Then we could really do that. I thought that was a bit sad. I think they want to spice up the cash register at DSM.”
Tuesday’s stage belonged to Hugo Houle, the Canadian rider who broke away to triumph in Foix – and then dedicated the win to his brother, Pierrik, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver a decade ago.
Houle and his brother used to compete together in cycling and triathlon. “When he died there was no one to share the story,” he said after his solo victory. “That was my way to keep believing. That was my motivation, to do it for my little brother. I had no idea I could do it and today I did.”
Preamble
There are only five racing days left in this year’s Tour de France – and if either Jonas Vingegaard or Tadej Pogacar want to make their winning move on a climb, it will have to happen today or tomorrow. The battle between the two, sparked into life a week ago in the Alps, is starting to resemble the never-ending fight scene from They Live.
After a gentle first 50km, Wednesday’s short stage then serves up four steep climbs in quick succession, ending with a summit finish at Peyragudes. With both contenders’ teams weakened on the road here, this is a chance for Pogacar to strike back, or for Vingegaard to assert his dominance. Or for Geraint Thomas to roll through the dust cloud in front of him and make this a three-way race to Paris.
Today’s stage profile doesn’t favour a breakaway, but with the GC heavyweights focused on each other, it could be a day for a late surge. Perhaps the time is right for Thibaut Pinot or Romain Bardet (who won here in 2017) to deliver France’s first home stage win this year. We’ll find out soon enough, so stick around.
