Tadej Pogacar absolutely torched Stage 10 of the Tour de France on Bastille Day, launching a solo attack that not only snagged him his third stage win of *this* Tour, but also delivered a massive dose of payback for a similar stage two years ago. That day, arch-rival Jonas Vingegaard famously beat him. Not this time. Pogacar, riding in yellow, secured his 24th career Tour de France stage win by a solid 32 seconds over Remco Evenepoel, who clawed back from some serious trouble on the final climb for a second-place sprint.
"Completely Destroyed" But Still Dominant
This was a classic Pogacar masterclass. He went solo with 15km to go on the category one Col de Pertus, after Vingegaard's own teammate, Davide Piganzoli, unknowingly helped set the pace. Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates-XRG squad had already been setting an "infernal pace" all day, reeling in the breakaway with less than 40km remaining on the Puy Mary-Pas de Peyrol climb. Remember Richard Carapaz, the former Giro d'Italia winner? He tried an attack on that same climb, even getting a one-minute lead, but Pogacar just hunted him down. You gotta respect that relentless drive. After crossing the line, Pogacar said he had "similar legs to the finish, completely destroyed," just like two years ago. But this time, the outcome was different. He added, "I didn't know I was going to win until the last kilometres. Then I remembered it was Bastille Day and tried to honour the yellow jersey." French teenager Paul Seixas put in a fine ride for third in a group that included Vingegaard, who finished seventh, 44 seconds back from Pogacar. Evenepoel, despite struggling on the Col de Font de Cere, made an "astonishing recovery" on the descent to sprint for second, joining teammates and rivals like Florian Lipowitz (fourth), Vingegaard, Juan Ayuso (fifth), and Mattias Skjelmose (sixth). British rider Tom Pidcock even managed to rebound to ninth after crashing earlier, moving up three spots in the general classification to tenth.The Gap Is Growing, And It's Getting Real
This win is huge for the overall standings. Pogacar's now extended his lead in the general classification to a whopping three minutes and 36 seconds over Vingegaard. Evenepoel moved up to third overall, four minutes and six seconds behind Pogacar, taking the spot of Pogacar's teammate Isaac del Toro, who slipped to seventh. This 166.6km stage through the Massif Central, with its tricky sawtooth profile and seven categorized climbs, was exactly the kind of parcours where Pogacar had been caught by Vingegaard in 2024. Not today. Today was all about redemption and a show of strength for the four-time Tour champion. So what's next? With Pogacar putting this kind of distance between himself and his rivals, especially Vingegaard, the pressure is on. He's taking a massive stride towards that record-equalling fifth Tour crown. The rest of the peloton has to figure out a way to respond, and fast. You gotta tune in, because this Tour just got even more exciting.This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.