Evenepoel Targets Tour de France No. 2 Spot, 5 Minutes Behind Pogačar After Vingegaard Crash

Q: Is Evenepoel’s focus on second place a mind game before a final Alpine ambush on Pogačar's yellow jersey?

No. The evidence points to a realistic reading of the race, not a bluff before an Alpine attack on Tadej Pogačar. Evenepoel has been explicit that his goal is to defend second place, calling that “an amazing result” behind “one of the best riders ever,” and saying the Tour win is “very far out of reach.” After Tuesday’s time trial win, he still framed his race around protecting his own position rather than chasing yellow. The numbers support that stance. Even after winning Stage 16 and taking 28 seconds out of Pogačar, Evenepoel remains 4 minutes 32 seconds down with only a handful of stages left. That is a huge gap to close against a rider who has looked strongest in the high mountains and has shown few signs of weakness. His recent surge is real: he won on Plateau de Solaison, then won the Thonon-les-Bains time trial, and his weight loss appears to have improved his climbing without hurting his TT power. But those gains do not yet amount to evidence that he can take multiple minutes from Pogačar in the final Alpine block, especially on terrain such as Alpe d’Huez where Pogačar is expected to be formidable. The more plausible reading is that Evenepoel is racing pragmatically. With Vingegaard out, second place is his to defend against Isaac del Toro, Paul Seixas and Juan Ayuso. If an Alpine opportunity opens, he will likely take it, but his public focus on second looks more like honesty than mind games.

3 articles · Updated · Cyclingnews · Jul 20

Five minutes down on Tadej Pogačar, Remco Evenepoel said his only goal for the final week is defending second place, not chasing the yellow jersey.
Jonas Vingegaard’s crash-out on Sunday moved the Belgian into second overall, but Evenepoel said Pogačar “doesn’t need to worry about anyone” if the race continues normally.
Tuesday’s 26.1km time trial to Thonon-les-Bains is his next key test; the three-time world champion said the 9.7km opening climb could suit him despite nearly 4kg of weight loss.
Evenepoel is targeting a stage win and expects the time trial to shape the podium battle before brutal Alpine stages, where Isaac del Toro, Paul Seixas and Juan Ayuso remain threats.

Sources

Cyclingnews1d ago

Remco Evenepoel Focuses on Defending Second Place in Tour de France After Vingegaard Crash

Cyclingnews6h ago

Tour de France: Time trial world champion Remco Evenepoel destroys race against the clock and takes back-to-back wins on stage 16 | Cyclingnews

AOL1d ago

Evenepoel wins time trial for back-to-back Tour de France stage victories, Pogačar still leads - AOL

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Evenepoel Targets Tour de France No. 2 Spot, 5 Minutes Behind Pogačar After Vingegaard Crash

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