Here’s our race report
Points /green jersey standings
1. Jonathan Milan (ITA) Lidl - Trek 332
2. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates - XRG 257
3. Biniam Girmay (ERI) Intermarché - Wanty 196.
Jonas Vingegaard (DEN) Team Visma - Lease a Bike 165
5. Tim Merlier (BEL) Soudal Quick-Step 156
King of the Mountains standings
1. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates - XRG 105
2. Jonas Vingegaard (DEN) Team Visma - Lease a Bike 89
3. Lenny Martinez (FRA) Bahrain Victorious 80
4. Thymen Arensman (NED) INEOS Grenadiers 65
5. Ben O’Connor (AUS) Team Jayco AlUla 51
General classification standings
1. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates - XRG 66:55:42
2. Jonas Vingegaard (DEN) Team Visma - Lease a Bike +4:26
3. Florian Lipowitz (GER) Red Bull - BORA - +11:01
4. Oscar Onley (GBR) Team Picnic PostNL +11:23
5. Primoz Roglic (SLO) Red Bull - BORA - +12:49
6. Felix Gall (AUT) Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale +15:36
Team7. Kévin Vauquelin (FRA) Arkéa - B&B Hotels +16:15
8. Tobias Johannessen (NOR) Uno-X Mobility +18:31
9. Ben Healy (IRL) EF Education - EasyPost +25:41
10. Ben O’Connor (AUS) Team Jayco AlUla +29:19
Oscar Onley spoke to reporters and looked done in by his efforts, he didn’t make much sense. ““I wouldn’t say I kept my cool. I still felt good, I’m just not at the level of those guys when they attack and it showed at the end that they went pretty hard up there.”
“Um, yeah, it was hard…it was… I don’t even know. Visma just set a hard pace and I just did what I could. The team was really good.”
Twenty-two seconds from the podium now. I mean, you must be excited I go for the last mountain stage?
“Yeah, Yeah, that’s. I don’t know. That’s, uh. That’s not much. We’ll give everything tomorrow.”
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That’s the lot from me. John Brewin will bring you the rest of the reaction. Thanks for reading.
Did Ben O’Connor believe he could win the Queen Stage?
“No, not at all. But I felt much better today from the start. I was pretty active.
“Probably the point where you realise you could have a shot was the top of the Madeleine, when Jonas and Pogi came across, and we were still with them across the top of the summit. It was a perfect opportunity to go in the valley.
“This is a climb I had good memories of because I rode for my [former AG2R] teammate, Felix Gall, to win there … yeah, it was pretty sweet to do it again, but this time it’s me who puts my hands up in the air.
“It’s a rough race. It’s the biggest race in the world, but it’s for sure the cruellest. I’ve wanted to have another victory for so many years now. I’ve been fighting for third and fourths, but I couldn’t be more proud of myself, and the boys. They backed me every single day through this whole race, even in the rough times. Thanks to everyone at Jayco-AlUla. It’s what the team needed, and what I needed.”
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“It was a brutal day,” Vingegaard says to reporters at the finish. “I’m not sure if I’ve ever done such a hard stage in the Tour. I felt good, the team felt good. We had big plans. We tried to go early … today everyone was 100% behind the plan. It gives me so much motivation when I have a team like this working for me.”
What happened before the final climb?
“We didn’t want to work together [I presume he means Visma and the other teams in front]. Lipowitz went up the road, and we waited for our teammates before the Col de la Loze.”
Is Pogacar unbeatable now?
“No, I think we were pretty equal today, even if he took a few second at the end. The Tour is not over.”
One reporter asks: “Still?”
“Still.”
“I think they threw the kitchen sink at them,” Matt White says of the Visma tactics. “It just didn’t work out … they went earlier than we expected.”
“What percentage of the gap between Vingegaard and Pogacar do you chalk up to fitness/condition of the riders vs their respective teams’ tactics?” asks Alexander on email.
“Visma always had a hard task ahead this year but they seem to be shooting themselves in the foot every chance they get. Their decisions only seem to make sense if they’ve given up on Vingegaard’s GC chances and are trying to get additional stage wins, so the tour’s not a total failure. If they’re as committed to the GC as much as they claim publicly, then their tactics have been a masterclass in poor decision-making.
"It looks like this team’s glory days are behind them and I’d expect the collapse to be exacerbated as riders inevitably leave for teams with clear priorities.”
Pogacar has stretched his GC lead over Vingegaard to 4min 26sec.
Top 10 on Stage 18
1) O’Connor 5hr 03min 47sec
2) Pogacar +1min 45sec
3) Vingegaard +1min 54sec
4) Onley +1min 58sec
5) Rubio +2min
6) Gall +2min 25sec
7) Roglic +2min 46sec
8) A Yates +3min 03sec
9) Johannessen +3min 09sec
10) Kuss +3min 26sec
Reaction and confirmation of the standings coming up …
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Roglic rolls in, a minute or so behind Pogacar. A brilliant ride from the Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe man.
Now Kuss comes in. Will Onley be in third tonight? Here comes Lipowitz …
Pogacar attacks Vingegaard on the final slopes! He burns off Rubio and claims second place. The Slovenian doesn’t even stand up on the pedals, he just rides away from his rival and further strengthens his iron grip on the battle for GC.
Pogacar finished second, a handful of seconds in front of Vingegaard in third.
Ben O'Connor (Jayco AlUla) wins stage 18
An incredible ride from the Jayco AlUla rider. He climbs up, almost into the clouds at the ski resort of Courchevel, and claims the second Tour de France stage victory of his career. Phenomenal performance. The Australian punches the air and roars with happiness.
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500m to go: Vingegaard fails to shake off Pogacar. Plus ça change.
Oscar Onley goes with the two GC favourites! Can he make the podium?
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1km to go: Flamme rouge for O’Connor! He is still 2min 42sec ahead of the yellow jersey group!
Vingegaard attacks his rival but Pogacar immediately responds and marks his man.
1.5km to go: O’Connor of Jayco AlUla looks like a man who knows he’s got this in the bag! He rides on strongly, pumping past countless screaming fans, onwards to his fourth career win at a grand tour, and his second at the Tour de France, the greatest of them all.
Truth is, Vingegaard isn’t on bad form at all, but Pogacar is just too strong.
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2km to go: Polka-dot rain caps, doubtless given out by the publicity caravan, are the order of the day among fans on the higher slopes on the way to Courchevel.
There is a party atmosphere but we are not seeing the epic duel among the GC contenders that some hoped for.
2km to go: Rubio stands up on the pedals, presumably only trying to protect his second place, but perhaps he doesn’t know how far ahead O’Connor now is.
Unless he blows up spectacularly, O’Connor has got this in the bag, he looks really strong.
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2.7km to go: Rubio, previously dropped by O’Connor, is 2min 05sec down. The Pogacar group is 2min 50sec down on O’Connor still.
3.5km to go: Pogacar rides on, ever upwards. He looks comfortable. Narvaez, his teammate, has popped but Adam Yates is still there and is setting the pace, making everyone else suffer.
Will Roglic be able to overhaul Lipowitz in GC, after all? The German is 30sec down on his teammate.
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4km to go: Kuss and Gall are dropped as UAE continue to set the pace.
Ben O’Connor has over three minutes, still, but only just: it’s a 3min 02 sec lead on Pogacar.
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4.5km to go: Adam Yates leads Pogacar through a loud gaggle of fans. Is Pogacar about to launch? Or is he happy with the situation as it stands? It’s not like he needs any more time in GC, is it?
4.5km to go: “Visma’s tactics make absolutely no sense to me,” writes Marcus. “How did they let this get away? If Jonas needs to make up 4 minutes, why does he always wait until the very end to launch his attacks? And if you’re going to wait, why do they keep setting the pace rather than letting UAE drive?”
5km to go: Ben O’Connor already has a a Tour stage win on his palmarès – he triumphed in Tignes, another ski resort, in 2021. He also has stage victories at the Giro and Vuelta. Can he make it No 2 at the Tour? He hits a steep section with hundreds of fans yelling on either side of the road.
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6km to go: O’Connor powers on up the climb. He looks in flying form but you never know when a rider might blow up on an ascent of this difficulty. Certainly it looks like he’s eaten and drunk enough to be in great shape for a final blast up the mountain. He is holding his lead at over 3min – it’s 3min 16sec at the moment. It’s looking good!
7km to go: “Spontaneously, I’ve just booked to go to Paris for the finale on Sunday to cheer on Pogi,” writes Sally. “I’ve only booked flights and haven’t planned anything else yet – any suggestions from anyone for the best place to view?”
As it’s a new feature for the final stage, personally I’d try to get on or near the climb in Montmarte (that will be tackled three times). I guess you’d have to arrive quite early to get a good spot though. Regardless of where you are it will be very exciting to be there – enjoy.
8km to go: Still over 3min advantage for O’Connor over the yellow jersey group. This is looking good for O’Connor and Jayco-AlUla right now … but there is an attack looming from Pogacar, you feel.
O’Connor is now among a thick knot of fans on a big left-hand turn.
“If they start attacking in the next kilometre this advantage could come down very, very quickly,” remarks Kelly on commentary.
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9km to go: Narvaez and Adam Yates lead Pogacar up the mountain. This is all set up for a devastating attack from Pogacar on the steepest slopes.
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10km to go: Roglic and Vauquelin were dropped from that group of favourites. Roglic has got back in, but the Frenchman is struggling.
O’Connor still has 3min 35sec on the Pogacar group. Immense effort.
Lipowitz is now under half a minute ahead of the group of favourites. It looked like he was in danger of dropping like a stone when he fell behind on the Col de la Madeleine, so this is a very good recovery from the young German.
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10km to go: “The key thing for Craig is to decide what sort of stage or stages he wants to see,” emails Tim. “Then make sure you get the announcement of the route when it’s released in November, then book accommodation ASAP, especially if you want to see a mountain stage! Then relax and plan the rest at your leisure!”
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11km to go: UAE Team Emirates XRG take it up now. Simon Yates is done. Narvaez and Adam Yates are there. Suddenly it’s the race leader’s team setting the pace.
“I think they [Visma] threw it away,” says Kelly.
12.5km to go: Back down the road, Giro d’Italia winner Simon Yates is putting in a significant effort to set the pace in the group of favourites. Kuss remains glued to his wheel. Then Vingegaard.
The question in all of this … is Pogacar feeling good, or feeling jaded after what’s been a stressful day of defence already?
O’Connor is 3min 26sec ahead of the yellow jersey group. Lipowitz, still on his own, is the third “group” on the road, about 40sec in front of the group of favourites.
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13km to go: O’Connor, cheered on by Steve Cummings alongside in the team car, is giving this everything he’s got. Cummings hands over a bottle. The Australian is already 44sec in front of Rubio. A massive effort. But will he have enough?
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14km to go: “Wonderful to see the photos from people at the side of the route,” emails Craig. “Does anyone have advice on how to get there and watch the race live on a mountain next year? I literally don’t know where to start (other than: go to France)!”
I’ve never been to a mountain stage (although it isn’t hard: go to France is a great start). I did do a day trip for stage 2 this year, won by Mathieu van der Poel, in Boulougne-sur-Mer. Ferry from Dover to Calais and about a 45km ride to the finish. Easy, cheap and fun …
14.5km to go: Jorgenson now joins forces with the Vingegaard/Pogi group. So Visma have four riders there: Simon Yates, Kuss, Jorgenson and Vingegaard.
However, Jorgenson looks cooked, and is already losing contact with the group led by Simon Yates.
15km to go: “I don’t know what Visma was thinking, letting Jorgenson run up the road like that,” emails Stephen. “They had Pogi isolated and even if he was Pogi-strong, they could have kept that pressure on. Silly mistake now that they’ve ordered Jorgenson to wait and have allowed Yates and Narvaes into the yellow jersey group. Pogacar is going to punish Visma for this.”
16km to go: O’Connor attacks Rubio and rides away. It’s an impressively concerted attack, and Rubio cannot respond. But now the two GC favourites both have plenty of support in the group behind, you would have to fancy a stage win for Pogacar or Vingegaard.
16.5km to go: We have 13 riders in Pogacar’s group. Simon Yates (Visma Lease A Bike) leads the way, with Sepp Kuss is second wheel. There has been a sort-out after the previous climb, when Kuss and S Yates both lost touch with their leader. Pogacar has Jhonathan Narvaez and Adam Yates for company, having previously been alone.
17.5km to go: One final push, then, for riders and live-bloggers alike. The yellow jersey group is 3min 09sec behind the two in front, O’Connor and Rubio, who are putting in a massive effort to try and cling on to this lead all the way to the finish.
Will we see GC drama in the next 45 mins or so?
19km to go: Does Pogacar want the stage win? I mean, of course he does, but things are working out nicely for him at the moment, barring any major surprises on this long final ascent.
The gruppetto, consisting of 66 riders including Milan, Merlier and Groenewegen, is 26min 18sec behind the front of the race.
20km to go: Rubio leads O’Connor with the front pair working together on the road up to the ski resort. O’Connor stamps on his pedals and comes past his rival/ally. The yellow jersey group is more than three minutes behind the two leaders.
20.5km to go: Lipowitz has nearly caught Jorgenson. Jorgenson, as stated, has slowed up so he can join forces with his team leader Vingegaard. The crowds are getting bigger as the group of favourites winds its way up this ludicrously long final climb.
21km to go: “What I understand from reading these updates (I am in Western US, and I cannot watch) is Vingegaard/Visma is not attacking,” writes Stephanie. “Disappointing. I was hoping for a massive show of strength from him (Just to make it interesting.)”
Visma did accelerate on the Col de la Madeleine, the second climb, and they have isolated Pogacar, who is in the group of favourites on the final climb without a teammate. But Pogacar looks too strong (from a Visma point of view) and seems easily able to cover the attacks that have come so far.
22km to go: It appears that Jorgenson was not dropped, but instead is waiting to join forces with his team leader Vingegaard.
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23.5km to go: Ben O’Connor is setting a punishing pace on the front. Rubio and the Australian have now forged ahead without Jorgenson.
Lipowitz continues to toil up the climb on his own, more than two minutes in front of the group with Pog, Vin and Onley.
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24km to go: Pogacar just looks too strong, does he not? Perhaps this will soften him up for another go by Visma-Lease A Bike tomorrow … but at the moment it’s hard to see Vingegaard being strong enough to make much of a dent, if anything at all, in Pogacar’s commanding GC lead.
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24.5km to go: The Onley group has joined up with the Pogacar/Vingegaard group. So it’s 19 riders together there, the third group on the road, counting Lipowitz in between them and the front three.
25km to go: David emails: “Re: the time cut, in 2001 in Pontarlier (where we are going on Stage 20) a breakaway group of fourteen were 35 minutes ahead of the peloton, who should have been out of the race according to a strict application of the rules.
“The peloton was allowed to continue in the race.”
Good knowledge, thanks.
26.4km to go: The leaders hit the base of the final climb. Lipowitz is still trying to get across to the three leaders.
“Vingegaard can’t see the pace early in the climb,” points out Kelly on commentary, regarding the battle for the yellow jersey. “Because that way, Pogacar gets an easy ride.”
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A news report from Jeremy Whittle:
David Rozman, a long-term member of Ineos Grenadiers staff, has left the Tour de France after the International Testing Agency launched an investigation into alleged messages he exchanged in 2012 with subsequently convicted German doping doctor Mark Schmidt.
The allegations stem from a recent documentary made by German TV outlet ARD, which linked Rozman to Schmidt, with further media reports including alleged texts between the Ineos staff member and Schmidt from June 2012 when the team was racing as Team Sky.
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29.5km to go: Lipowitz, clearly, is feeling good, despite apparently struggling on the second big climb. He has nearly bridged across to the lead group of three, to join O’Connor, Jorgenson and Rubio.
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31km to go: “We’re on the slopes below the Col de la Loze in Saint Bon Tarentaise,” emails Ian.
“We’ve just enjoyed a swag-fest from the publicity caravan. Hats, shirts, sausages, olive oil, Sweets, drinks and general tat. All part of the tour … Vive la Caravan.”
Thanks for your email. Enjoy the race, and the swag.
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32km to go: Lipowitz attacks solo!
33km to go: A spot of rain on the final climb, according to reports.
34km to go: At the back of the race, the gruppetto is 25min down.
“If say 66 riders finished outside the time limit, would they still be able to stay in the race?” asks Mark. “Does the group size matter?”
I am sure they have given special dispensation, in the past, to big groups that have missed the time cut.
36km to go: A flat section now leading into the final climb. It’s over a minute’s gap for the leading group: O’Connor, Jorgenson, Rubio. 1min 19 sec.
38km to go: “This is not a good situation for Visma-Lease A Bike,” says Sean Kelly on commentary. “They were doing a perfect job until now. But they are giving riders recovery time before the final climb.
“They have to see if they can break Pogacar on the final climb.”
40km to go: Three riders, O’Connor, Jorgenson and Rubio, are clear on their own now, with a 40sec gap. Pogacar, Vingegaard, Lipowitz, Roglic, Gall and Arensman have joined forces behind. It’ll be Roglic v Lipowitz going head to head on the final climb then? Along with Pogacar and Vingegaard.
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43km to go: Lipowitz and Arensman are working together, 45sec down on the leaders. The Onley group, nine riders, are now nearly three minutes down on the leaders.
We will see a reshuffle in the top 10 of GC tonight, and it looks possible that Roglic will take third overall heading into the final three stages. Unless of course his teammate Lipowitz can produce a massive ride on the Col de la Loze.
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45km to go: Going far beyond the call of duty, Amy has also sent a great photo of her current location over in France:
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47km to go: “Those descents are terrifying,” emails Tim. “I’ve fantasised about winning the polka-dot jersey since I became a Claudio Chiappucci fanboy in the early 90s.
“Back then I reckoned I could do the climbs if I glugged enough Lucozade Sport beforehand, but I always knew deep down I was too much of a wimp to descend at the required warp speed. I’d be screaming for my mum all the way down. Unedifying.”
49km to go: “Bonjour from Col de la Loze!” emails someone familiar to you all: Amy Sedghi.
“I’ve taken a week off from Guardian live-blogging to see the Tour de France in real life! Myself, my husband James and our friend Pete are sat about 3km from the summit of the Col de la Loze and the atmosphere here is building. The sun is out, the flags are flying and the scenery is stunning. Can’t wait to see the riders coming through! Allez, Allez!”
Have a wonderful time Amy. Enjoy.
52km to go: The commentators and pundits continue to speculate about Lenny Martinez and his naughty sticky bottles on the Col du Glandon. If he was going to be kicked out of the race, it would have happened already, but perhaps the powers that be will dock him some KOM points for clearly taking repeated assistance from the team car?
57km to go: Apologies for that earlier mix-up when I said it was UAE Team Emirates XRG who accelerated on the Col de la Madeleine. It was of course Visma-Lease A Bike, with Van Aert and Benoot among those doing big turns to try and put Pogacar under pressure on the second HC climb of the day.
Unfortunately for Vingegaard and his team, so far they have succeeded in putting Pogacar in the front group along with their own leader. On the plus side Vingegaard has a teammate with him in leading group of seven, in the shape of Matteo Jorgenson, while Pogacar is alone.
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60km to go: Arensman, dropped by the group of favourites, is chasing, second on the road. Lipowitz is just behind him, also on his own. Then a group of nine behind that – Onley, Johannessen, Kuss, Narvaez, Higuita, Yates, Soler and Storer.
The leaders are speeding down the descent off the Madeleine.
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64km to go: This is a test for Pogacar. This is up for grabs.
It’s hard to see Vingegaard putting something ludicrous like four minutes into Pogacar, but at the same time, it’s going to take a spirited ride from the champion to defend his position.
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66km to go: Vingegaard pips his rival, Pogacar, to 20 KOM points atop the Madeleine. Pogacar takes 15 KOM points and Jorgenson nabs 12. Lipowitz, all alone, rides through a few seconds later. It feels a bit sub-optimal for Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe to have two guys duking it out for GC, from a team point of view? But good to have two cards to play, at the same time.
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67km to go: Will it be the Col de Lose for Pogacar, all over again? I don’t think so.
68km to go: Jorgenson is setting the pace for Visma at the front of the race. Pogacar is all alone in this front group, with a significant distance still to ride. They are nearly at the top of the Col de la Madeleine.
68km to go: Again, the weather is mercifully decent near the top of the second climb. There had been predictions of some horribly unpleasant weather at higher altitudes and maybe it will still materialise on the final climb.
Re: Roglic v Lipowitz, are we seeing the difference between stamina and fitness?
69km to go: Roglic’s teammate Lipowitz, third in GC before today, has dropped away and is now 36sec behind the group of favourites. Roglic’s class looks to be coming to the fore and he is confirming his status as the strongest rider in the Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe team.
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70km to go: Eight up front now. Pogacar, Vingegaard, Roglic, Gall, O’Connor, Arensman, Jorgenson, Rubio. Just over 3km to go to the top of the second HC climb of the day. It was Visma-Lease A Bike and not UAE who upped the pace from behind the break, and now Pogacar is looking somewhat isolated, even if he has covered the first big attack by Vingegaard comfortably enough.
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71.5km to go: After a big turn by Kuss, Vingegaard attacks! Pogacar stays on his wheel. The gap to the break is plunging, predictably, with the two best climbers in the race going for it now.
72km to go: The escape group is down to six: Roglic, Gall, O’Connor, Arensman, Jorgenson and Rubio.
Behind, but not very far behind, Sepp Kuss is setting the pace in front of Vingegaard. Pogacar is marking them and Lipowitz is there too. So Pogacar is potentially isolated …
72.5km to go: “If they want to isolate Pogacar they need to do it now,” Matt White says of Visma’s tactics. “It needs to happen very, very quickly.”
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74km to go: Action from the chase group. Visma have upped the pace, looking to shut down the gap to the escape group.
Meanwhile the likes of Ben Healy are being dropped from the bunch given the hot pace being set by Pogacar and colleagues. Adam Yates is working on the front and dancing on the pedals.
Can Vingegaard and Visma-Lease A Bike exert any kind of pressure of Pogacar? Are they waiting for the final climb?
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77km to go: Still 10m to climb on the Col de la Madeleine. Ben Healy, the former maillot jaune, is pictured powering up the climb.
Lenny Martinez is in the seventh group on the road, waaaaay back, more than seven minutes behind the leaders. He is the current KOM leader but won’t be for long.
Meanwhile Jonathan Milan and some fellow sprinters are 14min 40sec behind the front of the race. Risky.
77.5km to go: Pogacar is a mere two minutes down, thanks to the efforts of Pollitt and co to control the gap to the break. Up front, Roglic is more than 11min down on his compatriot in the GC, so this is more than manageable for UAE as things stand.
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78km to go: Commentator Carlton Kirby asks Matt White: to what extent do the riders depend on power data on these long climbs?
“Some guys live and die off the numbers,” says the Australian. “While some guys are much more natural, and just hold the wheel in front of them. Some of them can relax, if you can relax on a climb like this.”
79km to go: It’s 12km still to go until the top of the climb. A front group of eight has now firmly established and the gap has flown out to 1min 54sec. Roglic, Gall, O’Connor, Arensman, Jorgenson, Baudin, Rubio, Armirail are the men there.
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79km to go: “I’m watching on pro-USA Peacock, with Bob Roll and the evergreen Phil Liggett on commentary (we need to pack him in aspic for 11 months of the year),” emails Tony. “I have been watching the Tour since the 1980s. Back then, as a kid, we didn’t have too many British riders to root for until Robert Millar rocked up. I had to content myself with adopting both Sean Kelly and Phil Anderson as honorary Brits, which I’m sure both would have had an issue with.”
82km to go: Roglic, Gall, O’Connor, Wellens, Baudin, Rubio, Armirail are the seven riders, now just 12sec behind the two leaders, so they are stepping things up.
“This is a quality group of climbers,” says Matt White. He thinks if they have a three, four minute lead going into the final climb they have a chance of fighting for the win.
We have 15km to go until the summit of the Madeleine.
83km to go: Martinez is slipping back through the peloton after winning the first climb. Arensman of Ineos, no doubt, is going for maximum points on this next climb, and that would put him in the KOM lead.
The third group on the road, by the way, has four riders in it: Muhlberger, Van Den Broek, Leknessund and Lutsenko. The Roglic group, second on the road, is 23sec behind the two leaders.
84km to go: “Joining lots of others in following along from the office,” writes Sam on email. “Although I reckon I’ll have to find a way to put the stream on when the nuclear Jonas attack comes in about 10kms (fingers crossed). Jonas to get across to Jorgenson, and put 5 mins into Pog? Maybe?”
I think Pogacar has the legs to cover it, and then some, but let’s see.
84km to go: It’s a lead of about 30sec for the front group.
Enric Mas (Movistar) has abandoned the race.
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86km to go: Now it’s two up front. Jorgenson (Visma-Lease A Bike) and Arensman (Ineos Grenadiers) are working together. They have 40sec on the chase group, that consists of nine riders: Roglic, Gall, O’Connor, Garcia Pierna, Wellens, Baudin, Rubio, Armirail and Lutsenko.
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86km to go: “A lot of riders all over the road at the minute,” says Adam Blythe on the TNT Sports motorbike, flying down the descent off the Col du Glandon. “Difficult to keep up with who is where.”
Amen, brother.
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89km to go: Arensman, Wellens and Jorgenson are out front on their own now, a breakaway group of three. They are about to hit the second ascent of the day, the start of the Col de la Madeleine.
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92km to go: A good bit of Roglic banter from Daniel Friebe on “Twitter”, as I like to call it.
Roglič‘s last two results in Courchevel: 11th & 13th.
— Daniel Friebe (@friebos) July 24, 2025
Both in ski-jumping.
95km to go: Martinez now tops the KOM standings, with 80pts, and Arensman is second, with 63. “Pogi” has been relegated to third, for now, on 60pts. You fancy that will change later.
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97km to go: Carlton Kirby steps in on commentary and pours praise on Martinez for winning the KOM points atop the Col du Glandon. The co-commentator Robbie McEwen fills him in on those “sticky bottles”. Matt White wonders out loud if any action will be taken against the Frenchman and his team.
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101km to go: The leading group, to recap, consists of 13 riders.
Oh, I really should tell you that Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious) took 20 KOM points atop the first climb. Arensman was second, Jorgenson third. The commentators were scoffing at the assistance Martinez received from his team car on the way up.
105km to go: Leknessund (Uno-X Mobility) and Garcia Pierna (Arkéa–B&B Hotels) almost crash on the descent off the Col du Glandon.
It looks like we have seven separate groups on the road right now.
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107km to go: Matt White, the former Jayco-AlUla DS, hits the commentary box. “I like this move by Roglic,” he says. “He’s obviously feeling better as this Tour goes on. If anything he is putting Onley under pressure.”
He then mentions the current ride by the powerhouse Nils Pollitt, who is controlling the gap for Pogacar. Mind-blowing, I think he called it, which is fair considering Pollitt’s sheer size compared to the pure climbers.
“He’s a machine,” White says of Pollitt.
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109km to go: Wellens, who is in some of the best form of his excellent career, races back to the front group after that mechanical issue.
110km to go: There are some clouds up at the peak of the mountain but the weather isn’t bad at all. Small mercies for these overworked riders. Plenty of time for it to change on the later peaks, of course.
Wellens has a mechanical and needs a bike change, it looks like. Now Emmanuel Buchmann (Cofidis) also has a mechanical.
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110km to go: Jegat, Rodriguez, Berthet, Baudin, Woods, Van den Broek, Barta and Plapp are the eight riders in the second group. Although Berthet, it appears, is trying to make it across to the leaders now.
111.5km to go: We have 2.3km to go until the top of the Col du Glandon.
This is making me tired just watching it.
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113km to go: Down to 13 in the front group: Wellens, Jorgenson, Lenny Martinez, Arensman, Roglic, O’Connor, Garcia Pierna, Muhlberger, Rubio, Gall, Armirail, Lutsenko, Leknessund.
On the telly, Lenny Martinez is pictured getting a sticky bottle or two from his team car. Clearly he isn’t feeling good, and Rob Hatch on commentary suggests his fairly blatant conduct is worthy of a yellow card.
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115km to go: The breakaway has 53sec on the chasers. There are 14 riders up front.
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Pogacar suffers pre-stage scare in Visma team car shunt
The Tour de France overall leader Tadej Pogacar suffered a big scare on Thursday when he bumped into the team car of his chief rival, Jonas Vingegaard, before stage 18.
“We were going to the start line and the cars were also going ... we were cruising behind the (Visma-Lease a Bike) car, maybe a bit too close, and he braked suddenly ... maybe I don’t know if he wanted to brake check me,” Pogacar said with a smile.
“I was not ready because I did not see the reason why he had to stop urgently, so we crashed into the car … but it’s OK, I’m OK, we’re good.”
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117.5km to go: Another 8.5km to climb before the top of the Col du Glandon is reached.
118km to go: The sixth and last group on the road contains 52 riders, and predictably Milan is among them. The yellow jersey group – Pogacar’s that is – contains 23 riders. Pollitt, Soler, Adam Yates and Jhonatan Narvaez are alongside their leader, Pogacar.
119km to go: This is all very well, but have these guys tried cycling up from the tollgate in Dulwich to Crystal Palace three times in a row, like I did the other week? I think not.
119km to go: Mas, Berthet, Baudin and Barre make up the third group, 54sec behind the leaders.
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120km to go: Of course, Richard Hirst Theory states that this is all a bit of fun, and that Vingegaard and Pogacar are bound to duke it out on the slopes of today’s final climb, the Col de la Loze. Are you out there, Richard?
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120km to go: No, make that six groups on the road.
121km to go: It’s a 35sec lead for the break. There are now four distinct groups on the road. A six-rider group is second: Jegat (Total Energies), Rodriguez (Arkea/B&B), Mas (Movistar), Woods (Israel-PremierTech), Van den Broek (Picnic PostNL), Castrillo (Movistar) and Plapp (Jayco-AlUla).
122km to go: “If UAE let this break go, and give them six, seven minutes, other teams are going to try and protect their GC places,” says Rowe on commentary for TNT Sports.
He says it may appear as if UAE are being put under a lot of pressure, but makes the point that Pogacar’s commanding GC lead gives them plenty of options.
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123km to go: We have a 16-rider group at the front now: Roglic, Gall, O’Connor, Arensman, Jorgenson, Muhlberger, Garcia Pierna, Wellens, Woods, Rubio Reyes, Armirail, Leknessund, Storer, Lutsenko, Martinez, Barta.
124km to go: Roglic is informed, via team radio, that UAE Team Emirates are pulling hard on the front. “Don’t waste that much,” he is told of this current attack.
125km to go: Lutsenko and Wellens are now well within sight of a chasing group. That group includes Roglic.
It’s all very active and very fluid, with groups forming and breaking up with regularity.
Congratulations to Lizzie Deignan on a wonderful career, by the way. I was watching on the final straight when she won silver in the women’s road race, behind Marianne Vos, at London 2012. Great memories.
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Lizzie Deignan retires from cycling
Lizzie Deignan has announced her immediate retirement from professional cycling after sharing news that she and husband Phil are expecting their third child. The 36-year old former world champion had previously said 2025 would be her final season but has called time on a career in which she recorded 43 professional wins, among them victories at Paris-Roubaix, Liege-Bastogne-Liege, Strade Bianche, the Tour of Flanders and the Women’s Tour. Deignan took the world title in 2015, a Commonwealth Games gold medal in 2014 and Olympic silver at the London Games in 2012. (PA Media)
127km to go: Roglic powers away from Van Aert, who is back in a bunch of riders who are off the front of the main group. It’s all strung out, gaps everywhere, with the riders toiling up the first HC climb.
Plenty of excitement in the commentary box about Roglic attacking. He is 12sec behind the front two, Wellens and Lutsenko.
127km to go: Now Van Aert is dropping off the pace at the front. Wellens is the man setting a fierce pace. No one can accuse UAE Team Emirates XRG of just sitting there and waiting to defend attacks …
Back down the road, Roglic attacks!
128km to go: Rutsch has been dropped by the front group. So it’s down to four. Ben O’Connor is between the main group and the break, presumably trying to bridge across. The gruppetto, AKA the autobus, has formed back down the road. There are 48 riders in it. Six Lidl-Trek riders are there including Milan.
The gap between break and peloton is 22sec. And the front group is down to three: Wellens, Van Aert, Lutsenko, with Groves dropped.
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129km to go: “I think Jonas needs to go hard, and he needs to go early,” remarks Adam Blythe of today’s potential tactics for Visma-Lease A Bike. “They may be trying a similar tactic that worked for Simon Yates at the Giro.”
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130km to go: The race has hit the lower slopes of the first climb, the Col du Glandon.
“Jonas has good legs,” says Frans Maassen on TNT of the Visma team leader’s chances. “We’ll see what’s possible.”
He sounds confident, remarks Hannah Walker.
“Yes, I think so. We’ll see what happens. If not [if they can’t catch Pogacar], we have a deserved winner.”
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132km to go: The gap grows to 27sec.
133km to go: Indeed we have a five-rider break established. Tim Wellens (UAE Team Emirates XRG), Wout Van Aert (Visma–Lease A Bike), Alexey Lutsenko (Israel-PremierTech), Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck), and Jonas Rutsch (Intermarché-Wanty).
They have an advantage of 22sec but it looks like there is lots of attacking behind.
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136km to go: A group of four chasers – Van Aert, Lutsenko, Groves, Rutsch – have nearly caught Wellens now. So it looks like UAE’s strategy is going to pay off.
Briefly there were four, five groups on the road but it now looks like it’s back to three, including Matteo Vercher (Total Energies) on his own, trying to bridge across to the break.
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137km to go: “You start the stage with so much money in your pocket,” Rowe says of this brave move by Wellens. “Every move costs money. And this is looking like an expensive move.”
Rowe is making the point that Wellens is strong enough to get in a break later on.
Personally I can see the sense in Wellens ensuring he gets in any breakaway, but I suppose he could easily come up short later on the final climb, too.
138km to go: Girmay, who has endured a difficult race all round, is pictured racing along at the back of the bunch.
139km to go: Wellens has about 14sec on the bunch.
141km to go: No, sorry, I am quite wrong and Wellens is still out front on his own.
Guillaume Boivin (Israel-PremierTech) is off the back on his own, presumably ill or injured.
Jonathan Milan was also briefly off the back, Luke Rowe fancied it was because he switched to a climbing bike post-sprint.
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144km to go: Tim Wellens had about 10sec on the bunch but has been reeled back in now. Right after the sprint, a group of six went clear, but were also gobbled up by the peloton sharpish. Will we see a big escape group, containing plenty of strong climbers, go clear soon?
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145km to go: There’s a big split in the bunch. Something like 40 riders up front. Oh, but it looks like it may come back together pretty quickly.
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146km to go: Tim Wellens, Pogacar’s teammate, has attacked solo immediately after the sprint point. Presumably UAE Team Emirates XRG want to make double-sure they have someone strong in the breakaway to help Pogacar later?
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Milan wins the intermediate sprint
Girmay takes second but it’s hardly even a race for the line. Milan barely has to break a sweat to win it having been set up by his team, and Girmay looks happy to settle for second.
1) Milan
2) Girmay
3) Turgis
4) Abrahamsen
5) Wellens
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149km to go: The intermediate sprint at Rioupéroux is coming up in 1.5km. At this stage it looks like no one is going to even bother to challenge Lidl-Trek. (Which would back up De Jongh’s earlier assertion that plenty in the peloton would prefer Milan to win it.)
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151km to go: Luke Rowe, a recent competitor in the peloton and a current sports director with Decathlon–AG2R La Mondiale, is an excellent pundit and analyst. Sean Kelly, the king of common sense, is also superb with his deep knowledge of the inner workings of a bike race – even if his time in the saddle was somewhat longer ago.
153km to go: The camera zooms in on Roglic, riding comfortably along in the peloton. How will his Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe teammate, Florian Lipowitz, fare in this massive last block of climbing? Will we see the benefits of the stamina that Roglic has built up over the years compared to his younger, less experienced teammate?
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154km to go: Today’s first big climb, the Col du Glandon, is 21.7km long with an average gradient of 5.1%. The summit comes at 62.3km.
Secondly, the top of the Col de la Madeleine (19.2km at 7.9% average) comes after 104.6km.
Last but not least, the Col de la Loze (26.4km (!!!) at 6.5%) is the final boss level.
By the way the Col du Glandon is 1,924m altitude, the Madeleine 2,000m, the Col de la Loze is 2,304m.
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156km to go: Quinn Simmons, who produced a monster ride for Lidl-Trek yesterday in helping to set up Milan for his second stage win of the Tour, is riding fifth wheel. Quite right to give him a bit of a breather.
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158km to go: There are 80pts available in the KOM competition today. Before a looming battle royale in the mountains, Lidl-Trek are setting up Milan for a handy 20pts at the early intermediate sprint. The average speed today is pushing 50km/h. (It is 49.1km/h).
162km to go: In 2023, Vingegaard all but sealed the overall as Pogacar cracked on the Col de la Loze. Those memories will provide a bit of encouragement for Visma-Lease A Bike today.
“As we’ve seen in the past, it can change very, very quickly,” observes Kelly in the commentary box. “If you’re little bit off your best today, that can be a disaster for you.”
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166km to go: Lidl-Trek continue to boss it for their sprinter, Jonathan Milan, the whole team massed at the front and driving the pace. The telly helicopter shows the peloton snaking through a picturesque valley with the mountains in the middle distance.
On the team radio, Lidl-Trek sports director Steven de Jongh indulges in what I presume is a bit of banter, saying that there are a lot of teams who would rather see the green jersey go to a sprinter: that is their man Milan.
He doesn’t mention Pogacar but we all know what he’s talking about.
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167km to go: Cyril Barthe (Groupama-FDJ) has also abandoned today, along with Rodriguez of Ineos Grenadiers. An early Barthe.
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169km to go: Lidl-Trek are massed at the front of the fast-moving peloton, seeking to control affairs until the intermediate sprint at Rioupéroux, that comes after just 23.7km.
“This is going to be a real day,” says Sean Kelly on commentary. It’s hard to argue with that.
“For the GC contenders it’s a real, real test.”
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Stage 18 begins
The flag is waved and just like that, the race has begun.
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“Hi Luke,” writes Alex on email. Hello Alex.
“I’ve joined the sad crew of people having to work in an office today so am unable to secretly have TNT or ITV on in the background. I’ll be following your updates avidly on this day of days that will, hopefully, go down in tour history.
“After Tuesday, I can see it going both ways. Has Tadej been bluffing strength and is he struggling in week three? If so he will be found out today in potentially extraordinary fashion. But equally, has he been focusing on building some allies in the peloton and let down by a relatively weak team incapable of chasing down breakaways, if so then he will surely want revenge on the Col De La Loze.
“Or maybe, they’ll just mark each other out – boring! Either way pleased to be with you and the Guardian family of cycling-obsessed procrastinators.”
Courchevel, as any fule kno, is a ski resort. It doesn’t take a genius to work out that some steep climbs will be involved given the riders will finish there. As just mentioned by Luke Rowe and Orla Chennaoui, too, all those steep climbs mean some technical descents. Fierce concentration, along with an ability to handle the burning pain in the legs and body, will be key for every rider in the bunch.
The neutralised rollout has begun. There will be some tired, tired bodies in that bunch as they make their way slowly to the official start.
“Today is another chance,” Jonas Vingegaard tells Matt Stephens. “We will fight until the end. Today is going to be a proper hard stage, and we’ll do everything we can.
“The last, what is it? Five, 6km or so, is super-steep [on the final climb]. Before that, there is a flatter section. In general it’s a very hard climb, a very long climb.
“We just have to keep trying. I am not really looking at that [Pogacar’s form and condition], I am just trying to do something.”
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Luke Rowe, on pundit duty for TNT Sports, spoke to Geraint Thomas about Rodriguez’s crash yesterday. “He actually crashed twice yesterday. He got tangled up with Alaphilippe and a few others … he was all right …
“Behind the big crash (1km out), people were reacting. We didn’t see it on the TV but 50metres behind that Carlos crashed.”
Carlos Rodriguez abandons
Contrary to what I wrote earlier, there has been a significant withdrawal this morning. Carlos Rodriguez (Ineos Grenadiers) is out, having broken his pelvis in a crash yesterday. He was 10th in GC.
That means Jordan Jegat (Total Energies) moves into 10th in GC, +23min 10sec down on the race leader.
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What are your expectations for today and for the rest of the Tour? Email me.
It is worth mentioning that the weather is expected to be highly unpredictable for the next couple of days. Riders and teams are going to have to deal with big fluctuations between hot weather lower down and cold conditions up in the mountains.
I fancy that a young man named Primoz Roglic will be a rider to keep an eye on today. Earlier in the race, Roglic said he was pleased to see his teammate Florian Lipowitz riding so strongly.
“I’m happy. I’m really happy,” he said of Lipowitz after stage 12 on the Hautacam, when the German rider sailed away on that final climb to finish third. “I hope he keeps the level to the finish.”
It would be fascinating to know what is being said in the Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe team briefing this morning. Presumably Roglic, while being willing to help Lipowitz, also believes he could still finish on the podium himself?
There are only two riders within 10 minutes of Pogacar in the GC, which is astonishing. Here is the top 10 after stage 17:
1) Tadej Pogacar 61hr 50min 16sec
2) Jonas Vingegaard +4min 15sec
3) Florian Lipowitz +9min 03sec
4) Oscar Onley +11min 04sec
5) Primoz Roglic +11min 42sec
6) Kevin Vauquelin +13min 20sec
7) Felix Gall +14min 50sec
8) Tobias Johannessen +17min 01sec
9) Ben Healy +17min 52sec
10) Jordan Jegat (Total Energies) +23min 10sec
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The heavy crash leading into yesterday’s sprint finish appears not to have claimed any victims yet. The official abandonments page is blank for today so far.
Happy to say that Biniam Girmay (Intermarché–Wanty), who looked quite badly hurt, has signed on and is ready to go.
(Given the difficult of today’s stage, mind you, anyone carrying an injury may yet be forced to pack it in later.)
Speaking of subplots – perhaps even full plots – there are some negative vibes around the race, after Pogacar and his team were accused of arrogance by rivals.
Jean‑René Bernaudeau, the Total Energies team manager, said: “They’re arrogant towards those who just want to live simply alongside them. I expect their team manager to make that point to them.”
“Arrogance is something, trying to win the Tour de France is another thing,” Pogacar said in response. “I think a lot riders would see us as arrogant because we want to control every single kilometre of this race. We don’t try to be arrogant, we just try to make our race as easy as possible. I think – this will sound super-arrogant – but some guys can stay quiet.”
For the full story, read Jeremy Whittle’s stage 17 report:
Preamble
Today’s stage doesn’t ask the riders for much, unless you count 5,450m of climbing across three hors catégorie mountains on the 171km route. Perhaps the more significant figure is 14,000: the sum total in metres of vertical ascent in four stages remaining (4,550m tomorrow, 2,990m on Saturday and 1,100m on Sunday, added to 5,450m today).
It will be gruelling, brutal, epic, punishing, attritional – take your pick. It might even be dramatic if Jonas Vingegaard and Visma-Lease A Bike can isolate the race leader, Tadej Pogacar, and take a chunk or two out of his commanding 4min 15sec lead in the general classification. The Col du Glandon, Col de la Madeleine and Col de la Loze must all be tackled by the peloton today: the sheer length and difficulty of the stage promises another rich self-contained narrative within the context of one of the toughest Tours in history. No doubt, Vingegaard’s team have created a plan for how they might launch attacks on Pogacar and UAE Team Emirates most effectively.
A successful Visma counterattack is not beyond the bounds of possibility but given Pogacar’s flying form, it feels more likely the reigning champion will roll with the punches, yet again, and take another significant step towards glory in Paris.
This being the Tour de France there will be subplots aplenty. The battle to form the breakaway will be fierce, with the 15 teams that remain empty-handed particularly motivated, while the race for the podium and top 10 in GC is very much on. Jonathan Milan of Lidl-Trek, who won yesterday to forge a 72-point lead over Pogacar in the green jersey standings, will merely be aiming to make the time cut, hoping a stage win for the Slovenian doesn’t reignite the points classification race.
It’s going to be emotional. Are you ready? Allez!
Stage start: 11.20 UK time / 12.20 local time
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