Wiggins doubts Vingegaard will reach Paris after heavy Tour de France setback
Bradley Wiggins has questioned whether Jonas Vingegaard will complete the Tour de France after the Dane suffered a major defeat to Tadej Pogačar in the Pyrenees.
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Vingegaard conceded more than two and a half minutes to his main rival on stage six, leaving his hopes of winning a third Tour title hanging by a thread after the first serious mountain test of the race.
While much of the discussion after the stage centred on whether the battle for the yellow jersey was already over, Wiggins went further. Speaking on The Move podcast, the former Tour winner suggested Vingegaard appeared mentally as well as physically beaten.
“I saw a broken man today,” Wiggins said. “In recent years, whenever he has been second, he has remained positive and said he would keep putting pressure on Pogačar all the way to Paris.”
“But how many years can you keep doing that? How many years do you want to finish second? After seeing him today, I have a feeling he may not finish the race. It is a wild thing to say, but we are here to give our opinions.”
Vingegaard did not attempt to hide that he had endured a difficult day after the stage, admitting that he had been unable to produce his usual level when Pogačar made the decisive move.
“I was not at my best,” Vingegaard said. “It was not my best day, but that is how it is. Of course I am disappointed. I should be. Sometimes that is life, and there is nothing I can do to change it.”
Asked whether the setback had affected his motivation, however, Vingegaard rejected the suggestion that his challenge was finished.
“No. I still believe in myself,” he said. “I still believe my legs will improve during the race, so the fight is not over.”
That message became even clearer the following morning. Speaking before the start of stage seven, Vingegaard appeared more composed and immediately turned his attention towards the remaining two weeks.
“The plan is to improve as the race goes on,” he told TV 2. “Hopefully I can get better over the next two weeks and make a difference there. We are not giving up. We still believe, and there are many days left before Paris.”
That was a very different picture from the one painted by Wiggins. While the former Tour winner questioned whether Vingegaard would even make it to Paris, the Dane was already looking ahead to the chances still to come.
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