Vingegaard responds to Pogacar comparison after fourth Giro stage win: 'I take it day by day'

Visma | Lease a Bike and Vingegaard laid their mark before the stage even began, with teams acknowledging the desire Vingegaard had to take the stage win in Carì, which, in turn, he dually delivered.

Delivered Vingegaard did as the Dane took his biggest margin of stage victory in the 2026 Giro d'Italia after succeeding by 1:09 over the Austrian Felix Gall. 

Vingegaard was quick to credit his teammates in his post-race interview, stating, "My teammates did an amazing job," said Vingegaard. "They [his teammates] pulled from the start and they didn't give the breakaway any chance today."

Tim Rex was the predominant player in controlling the breakaway, who has been a real standout for Visma | Lease a Bike in his first Grand Tour, with the hard graft the young Belgian has been putting in. He never let the breakaway have a gap of more than two minutes, which allowed Vingegaard's domestiques to go to work on the slopes.

Campenaerts, Kuss and Piganzoli set Vingegaard up for take-off, and he duly launched his solo attack from 6.6 kilometres out on the summit finish. Regarding the climb, Vingegaard said: “I think it was a very nice climb, a very hard climb.”

With Vingegaard claiming his fourth stage victory and five stages still to go, he was asked whether he would like to match Tadej Pogačar's six stage wins from the 2024 edition.

On the matter, the Dane said: “I take it day by day. Now I have four stages, and then we’ll see what we’ll do for the rest of the week,” Vingegaard concluded.

At the press conference, the question was put to him once again, prompting Vingegaard to respond with a smile: “Well, I mean, I’m gonna go for all stages this week. Also in Rome.”

He then struck a more serious tone, making clear that it was not something weighing heavily on his mind: “No, I don’t think too much about what’s happened in history.”

After opening up further gaps on another summit finish at the 2026 Giro d’Italia, Vingegaard has all but sealed his Grand Tour treble, with the Giro d’Italia the only title previously missing from his collection.

Now, for Vingegaard, the priority will be staying safe as the race heads towards Rome on Sunday.