Pogacar gifts – On Sunday’s second stage of the Tour de France, Tadej Pogacar slowed down on the finish and let teammate Isaac Del Toro cross first after Del Toro’s attack on the final 700-meter climb. Jonas Vingegaard retained the overall lead as the top four finished close,
Sunday’s second stage of the Tour de France ended with a gesture that looked like a decision made in real time: Tadej Pogacar, the defending champion, rolled through the final moments not to win alone, but to give his teammate Isaac Del Toro a first Tour stage victory.
Del Toro launched an attack on the 700-meter climb to the finish. pushing Pogacar into a position where victory looked reachable. Then. with the race coming down to the last stretch. Pogacar slowed and put his arm on Del Toro’s shoulder as he let him cross the line first. Del Toro, 22, reacted with open-mouthed surprise.
Pogacar’s emotion didn’t stop at the finish. After Del Toro sat on the ground to catch his breath in the heat, Pogacar went over and tightly hugged his UAE Emirates-XRG teammate, who appeared visibly moved after clinching his first Tour stage win.
Remco Evenepoel, riding for Belgium, finished third, just ahead of Jonas Vingegaard in fourth. The top four all recorded a time of 3 hours, 40 minutes, 1 second, but time bonuses for the top three trimmed Vingegaard’s advantage over Pogacar. What had been a 12-second gap became six seconds.
Vingegaard, still in position to win the Tour for the third time, came into the stage with previous titles in 2022 and 2023. He also took the yellow jersey on Saturday, after leading his Visma-Lease a Bike team to victory in the opening-day time trial around Barcelona.
The day’s racing began in Tarragona, with riders covering a hilly 168.5-kilometer route that returned to Barcelona. The course included three ascents to the 17th century Montjuïc castle before ending in the city.
Early on. two breakaway riders pushed hard—Dutchman Alex Molenaar and German Felix Engelhardt—before they were pulled back with about 30 kilometers remaining. As the pace rose across the peloton. Vingegaard and Pogacar positioned themselves near the front to reduce the risk of a crash. especially as Pogacar is known for sudden attacks.
Vingegaard spent much of the climbs sitting on Pogacar’s wheel. But the pace proved too demanding for Mathieu van der Poel, a one-day classics specialist, who dropped back as the stage stretched.
By the time the road narrowed into the final climb and the finish approached, it was Del Toro’s move that changed the outcome—until Pogacar chose, at the moment that mattered most, to share it.
Tour de France Pogacar Del Toro Vingegaard Isaac Del Toro first stage win UAE Emirates-XRG Jonas Vingegaard yellow jersey Montjuïc castle