Pogacar beats Vingegaard to add more seconds to Tour de France lead, equalling his 76-year-old record

It was the fifth stage win this month for the two-time champion. As he crossed the finish line, he stretched his arms and then held up his fingers to indicate how many victories he had already achieved.

The only other man to win five mountain stages in one Tour was Gino Bartali in 1948.

“If you had told me this before the Tour, I wouldn’t have believed you,” Pogacar said. “It’s actually out of this world. I’m so happy.

“(Five stages) is more than enough. One would be enough. Just the yellow jersey would be enough. But it is what it is, you don’t brake in cycling.”

Pogacar launched an attack on the leading duo with 150 metres to go and beat Vingegaard by seven seconds.

The positions on the final podium on Sunday are likely to be the same, after Pogacar extended his lead over two-time reigning champion Vingegaard, his biggest rival, to 5 minutes and 14 seconds.

Third-placed Remco Evenepoel lost even more time, crossing the finish line in fourth place — behind Richard Carapaz — losing 53 seconds to Pogacar to finish 8:04 behind the Slovenian star.

The Tour ends on Sunday on the French Riviera with a 34-kilometre time trial from Monaco to Nice, and not in Paris as usual because of the Olympic Games.

Barring any action, it is almost certain that Pogacar will reclaim Vingegaard’s Tour crown, thereby completing a rare Giro d’Italia and Tour de France double. The last rider to win both in the same year was the late Marco Pantani in 1998.

“I enjoyed (the stage) a lot,” Pogacar said. “It didn’t go as we planned but I couldn’t be happier with this one, another stage win. One more day… and tomorrow I think I’ll enjoy it too.”

After his explosive attack the day before, Pogacar said he would not try to win Saturday’s stage, a short but tough 133-kilometre (83-mile) route from Nice that included three tough Category 1 climbs.

The UAE Emirates rider simply stuck with the rest of the limited group of title contenders on the daunting 16km climb to the Col de la Couillole, until Vingegaard made his move and Pogacar joined the Dane’s wheel.

They then dragged together the remnants of the leading group and with 2.5 kilometres to go they caught up with the leading group consisting of Carapaz and Enric Mas.

First Mas and then Carapaz had to let go, after which an exciting battle developed between the two cycling stars in the last kilometer. However, it was only a matter of time before Pogacar would start his sprint.

Moments after crossing the finish line, Pogacar stopped and waited for Vingegaard to hug him.

Vingegaard spent nearly two weeks in hospital in April after a high-speed crash in the Tour of the Basque Country, only to resume competitive racing in that Tour.

“Somehow I was hoping he would give it to me,” Vingegaard said. “But I already knew I had ridden so hard, if he would sprint I wouldn’t have a chance because I was already at my limit.

“But you can always hope. But it’s cycling, that’s how it is. I don’t blame him at all, I would probably do the same. I’m just happy with how I performed today and how I was able to come back yesterday.”

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