Tim Merlier sprinted to his second consecutive victory in this year’s Tour de France, on stage eight, from Périgueux to Bergerac. But it was cruel luck for Liam Slock, of the Lotto Intermarché team, whose 175km effort at the front ended 1,300 metres from the finish line.
On a perfect stage for lovers of pale-stoned chateaux and crystalline swimming pools, the Tour leader, Tadej Pogacar, rode untroubled into Bergerac pondering the possibilities of adding to his growing tally of victories. The Slovenian already appears to have transcended a rivalry with Jonas Vingegaard and with Monday a rest day, will now be planning the strategy to ensure teammate Isaac del Toro leapfrogs the Dane into second place.
Sunday’s hilly stage to Ussel, into the Cantal, will not have anything that compares with the brutality of the Col du Tourmalet, but with two short and steep climbs in the final 50km it may cause splits in the peloton.
Vingegaard’s Visma Lease-a-bike sports director, Marc Reef, said his riders will be alert to Pogacar. “If I throw in the towel, I would not be a good DS,” he said. “We will look for every chance all the way to Paris.
“The gap was not that big on the Tourmalet and we believe in our plan. The Tour is still two weeks. We have a lot to fight for and the lead is only 2:40. Jonas lost it in one day and we can gain it in one day. That’s something we believe in.
“The Tour is not over. That [fightback] starts with a plan and belief in ourselves. Our strategy is still there and the big stages where the big differences are going to be made are still coming.”
Vingegaard’s teammate, Sepp Kuss, denied that Pogacar’s dominance was demoralising. “The Tour’s second half will suit Jonas better. You see how strong UAE is, with Pogacar and Del Toro, and there are not many guys who can follow them. It’s more about being creative to use our strength. You have to think outside the box a bit.”
The Uno-X Mobility team have lost the former race leader, Torstean Traeen when he abandoned after his crash on the Tourmalet stage, but that did not stop them from donning Norwegian football shirts and doing the Viking row at the stage start.
However, Remco Evenepoel’s tetchy demeanour has been attributed to Belgium’s quarter-final defeat by Spain in the World Cup. The Belgian, a lifelong Arsenal fan, captained the national under-16 team and came close to signing with Anderlecht, before committing to cycling.
“He’s fed up they lost,” said Netcompany Ineos’s Kévin Vauquelin. Evenepoel’s team, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, had released an awkward clip of the Olympic champion with teammate Florian Lipowitz, apparently making up after their spat. Already likened to a hostage video, the riders insisted, with their differences aired, that the hatchet had been buried. “We can move on,” Evenepoel said.
Tom Pidcock is regrouping after slipping to almost 10 minutes behind Pogacar in the Pyrenees. “I’m enjoying these two easier days,” he said of the flat stages to Bordeaux and Bergerac. “I’m realistic. I know that my shape is not 100%, but in the Tour you can’t really miss work in the buildup. It shows.”
“We will see after the rest day. I am not given a lot of freedom and it’s super hard to get in the breakaway, especially if it’s not really hilly. You need to make a race winning effort just to get into the break.”
