Jonas Vingegaard And The Impossible Standard | Defector

"With three kilometers left and only a flagging Giulio Ciccone up the road, Gall made his move. The maglia rosa was shot out the back, along with every other general classification contender except for Jonas Vingegaard. Gall spent the next two kilometers turning around in a futile attempt to get Vingegaard to work with him, which he did not, only going to the front with 800 meters left to drop Gall like a stone. It was exactly how Vingegaard likes to race: clinical, efficient, and ruthless."

"Depending on how you look at it, Vingegaard is either settling in to an impressive ride for the pink jersey, or he's confirming to the world that he no longer has it. He is either flying toward a sweep of all three Grand Tours, or he's cementing his status as a second-tier contender by failing to win the race against Tadej Pogacar's ghost. As we hit the second of somehow three rest days, Vingegaard is first among GC contenders, with 35 seconds on Gall and more than two minutes on the rest of a below-average pack of hopefuls."

"He's taken both summit finishes. In terms of the 2026 Giro alone, he's crushing it. The problem is, he's going to be judged against the impossible standard of Pogacar's 2024 Giro. Most Tour de France contenders do not race the Giro. Better to spend those three weeks in monastic isolation somewhere at altitude than nervously snorkeling through adversarial conditions in Italy."

"In fact, the trend in Tour prep over the last few years has moved toward fewer races and more finely optimized training blocks. Remco Evenepoel is not racing for more than two months, while everyone else who is serious about winning the Tour-from guy"

A breakaway formed early and was chased by the peloton, with Felix Gall’s Decathlon CMA CGM team heavily working to bring the group back to set up their leader. With three kilometers remaining, Giulio Ciccone was the only rider left up the road, and Gall launched a move. The maglia rosa and most general classification contenders were dropped except Jonas Vingegaard. Gall tried to get Vingegaard to cooperate for two kilometers, but Vingegaard refused and only went to the front with 800 meters left, dropping Gall. Vingegaard’s ride is efficient and ruthless, leaving him first among GC contenders with a 35-second lead over Gall and more than two minutes over the rest, including two summit finish wins.

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