Tadej Pogačar isn’t present in this year’s Giro d’Italia? Ha! Try telling that to Jonas Vingegaard. Tadej is here, alright. He’s everywhere Vingegaard’s attention and focus turns to. The shadow of Pogačar’s domination of the 2024 Giro looms large over the race. Six stage wins, the mountain jersey and a GC victory by almost 10 minutes. It was a masterful masterpiece by the master himself. And guess what? Vingegaard wants to emulate it or go even better. Of course he does. What else did we expect?
On stage 16 of the Giro, which finished across the Swiss border in Cari, Vingegaard demonstrated his utter superiority once again, attacking with 6.5km to go and coasting to the top. Felix Gall, as has been tradition in this year’s race, was the man closest to him, but he didn’t cross the line until 69 seconds later. Only four other riders were within two minutes of Vingegaard. Resplendent in all pink, this was The Vingegaard Show. Pogačar was the protagonist two years ago – this time Vingegaard is playing lead actor.
As things stands with just five days to go he has a 4:03 advantage to Gall who overtook Thymen Arensman and back into second. It will be difficult for Vingegaard to match Pogačar’s 9:56 victory margin. But he can win the mountain jersey (he currently has a lead of 82 points to Giulio Ciccone in that classification that is looking insurmountable) and can get the better of him on the count of stage wins.
He now has four stage wins and is on the odds-on favourite to win another two – stages 19 and 20. That would take him to six. The same number Pogačar reached. But why equal the Slovenian when he could go one better? What’s to say Visma-Lease a Bike don’t control the break all day tomorrow on stage 17 and tee Vingegaard up for the win on the short climb into Andalo? That’d set him up for seven wins. One more than Pogačar managed. That’d sound nice.
“No, I mean, I take it day by day,” Vingegaard said when asked if he was targeting six stage wins. “Now I have four stages and then we’ll see what we will do for the rest of the week.” Rubbish. Don’t believe for a minute that Tadej Pogačar isn’t present in this race and that equalling his six stage wins is not Visma’s objective. He’s the target Jonas Vingegaard is aiming for with each and every pedal stroke.
Image credit: Zac Williams/ SWpix.com
Richard Plugge, his team boss, spoke more truthfully. “Being a member of the four stages club is… it’s incredibly difficult to win a stage in a Grand Tour so if you’re able to grab another one you shouldn’t let that pass.” Another two – or three – is the mission now.
The two eternal rivals who have shaped and scripted this era of cycling are respectful and friendly towards each other but they are also proper, hard-worn adversaries. They motivate each other, fuel one another. When one raises their game, the other does too. When Pogačar cruised to the maglia rosa in the 2024 Giro, Vingegaard was at home recovering from a serious crash at Itzulia Basque Country. At the time he was the reigning Tour de France champion, having won the previous two yellow jerseys. His crash – allied to Pogačar’s improvement – tipped the balance back in Pogačar’s favour. Vingegaard has never let it be that it’ll stay that way forever.
This year the Dane is back possibly better than ever. He’s got a ruthless streak about him too, one he has finessed and sharpened over the past two years as Pogačar has gone on a mission of writing himself into the history books as the greatest ever. Vingegaard is placid, calm, level-headed, but he’s also a fierce winner. He has no interest in copying Pogačar and playing for titles in one-day races, but the Grand Tours are a different story. This is Vingegaard’s domain, too. His playground.
“We wanted to try to win in the pink jersey,” Vingegaard said after his latest win. “It was a very nice, very hard, long climb. My teammates did an amazing job. They pulled from the start and they didn’t give the breakaway any chances. On the last climb they reduced the bunch and I had to do the rest. I’m happy I can once again pay off the work of my teammates.”
Vingegaard won last year’s Vuelta a España and with five day to go looks a near-certainty to win the Giro too. In the mind games between the two that’s significant because – barring any injuries or illnesses – Vingegaard will beat Pogačar to the honour of winning all three Grand Tours. One-up on him ahead of their latest Tour de France showdown this July. Perhaps he’ll win seven stages too, to really rub it in. Don't let anyone tell you Pogačar's presence isn't being felt at this race.
