Yesterday was quite remarkable – witness Pogacar, single digit kilometers to go for the line, in that cauldron of absurdity and near-on religious frenzy that was that finale – our World Cup final, almost – calmly looking around him, assessing the state of affairs as he factored in not only his condition but that of his rivals, and also of his teammate, before launching a measured, clinical attack that gained him another 38 seconds over the best of the rest.

It appreared that he wanted to go with Del Toro, to have him by his side. I can’t remember seeing anything quite like it. The coolness of this guy, in the true heat of battle, is unmatched...

Nobody does theatre quite like the Tour de France in the mountains, and Saturday’s trip through the Vosges had it all — a double pass through the finish line, a break that briefly rewrote the GC on the road, and a Pogačar attack timed with the precision of a man playing chess while everyone else is playing a different game altogether.

THE BREAK THAT ALMOST BROKE THE RACE

Tom Pidcock and Richard Carapaz slipped into an early move and rode themselves into a fantasy GC for a few delirious hours — at one point Pidcock was the virtual second-place rider on the road. It didn’t last. Both cracked on the brutal final act of the stage, the Col du Haag, and Pidcock paid the heaviest price, sliding from 4th to 9th overall.

“I jumped across to the break — probably a mistake, with that last climb,” he admitted afterwards, dropping to 18th on the day. “But you know, whatever.”

Well, yeah and no, we don’t know. He was 9 seconds behind Remco after Stage 14 – and after being in the break all day – and is now almost 3 monutes down. It was a really weird ride after all the hard work yesterday – which was a great effort, let’s not forget – and he obviously still legs for the most part, til he cracked.

Third in the Tour is no mean feat and that chance is gone now. Sponsors and the management will surely not be too pleased either.

SEIXAS-MANIA CONTINUES BUT VINGGY’S BRAVERY IS NOT ENOUGH

Paul Seixas had his best day yet at this Tour — third on the stage, and into the white jersey as Best Young Rider, a really impressive ride – I mean, what were you doing when you were 19, in the summer hols?!

French fans up and down the Vosges roads had every reason to cheer him on. “It’s a great pleasure to have the white jersey and to still be in the running for the podium,” he said after. He is now only 15 seconds down on Remco.

Vingegaard, for his part, was as brave as ever, pushing the pace from the front for several kilometres on the Col du Haag in a bid to isolate Pogačar early. Bravery, though, only get you so far when Pogacar is in the water – you’re gonna get bit for sure – and good luck making it to the beach alive!

A STAGE THAT FELT LIKE A STADIUM

The road to Le Haag narrowed into what was practically a bike path in the final kilometres, and the crowds didn’t care — they packed the verges, some even climbed trees, turning the Vosges into a wall of noise. Pogačar was visibly moved by it afterwards: “I must say thanks to all the fans that came to the side of the road, it was really something unforgettable. To see all the crowds on the hills, over the mountain… I never seen something like this.” He added that the noise gave him a literal lift on the final ramps: “There was so much crowd that it just gives you an additional boost to go to the top… I had good feelings, so I grabbed it and took the opportunity.”

Through all that chaos, Pogačar stayed ice-cold, constantly reading not just his own form but Vingegaard’s and his teammate Del Toro’s too. “I knew that Isaac was maybe not 100 percent, so I was waiting for the last 2km to see if there was going to be any movement,” he said. Only when Del Toro showed the first signs of cracking did Pogačar pull the trigger — and it was still enough to solo to a 38-second win at the line.

Del Toro, for his part, wasn’t finished either — he clawed his way back to outsprint the chase group for second on the stage, a gutsy response after being dropped from the front group minutes earlier.

A LOOP WITH TEETH

Fun fact for anyone confused by their TV feed: the peloton crossed the finish line at Le Markstein twice on Saturday. The route passed through the finish town just 36km in — a formality — before disappearing onto a 111km loop through the Col du Page, a second helping of the Ballon d’Alsace, and finally the Col du Haag, before returning for the finish that actually mattered.

No rest for anyone — today’s stage offers zero respite either, with 183km and 3,950m of climbing on the menu.

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Top 3 stage 14:

1. Tadej Pogačar
2. Isaac del Toro, +0:38
3. Paul Seixas, s.t.

GC top 10:

1. Pogačar — 51:18:28
2. Vingegaard +4:30
3. Evenepoel +5:04
4. Seixas +5:19
5. Ayuso +5:22
6. Lipowitz +5:44
7. Del Toro +5:50
8. Skjelmose +7:35
9. Pidcock +7:59
10. Martinez +8:25