Tour de France 2025: Tadej Pogacar wins again on stage 13 mountain time trial

The Guardian

19-07-2025

Update:
Date: 2025-07-18T16:42:21.000Z
Title: Thank you for joining me for the coverage of the', 'Tour de France', '2025's mountain time trial.
Content: Tadej Pogacar won stage 13's mountain time trial, to increase his lead over Vingegaard to more than four minutes, while Evenepoel had a bad day.
Amy Sedghi
Fri 18 Jul 2025 18.36 CEST
First published on Fri 18 Jul 2025 13.00 CEST
6.36pm CEST
18:36
Thank you for joining me for the coverage of the Tour de France 2025's mountain time trial. Tadej Pogačar continues to make history, with his individual time trial win on stage 13, making him the youngest rider ever to get 21 Tour stage wins. He completed today's 10.9km course in a time of 23mins, 36secs faster than second placed and GC rival Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike). Despite losing more time to Pogačar, Vingegaard seemed happy with the day's results. He told reporters:
Yesterday was one of my worst performances and today was one of my best. So, I think I can be happy with today.
You can read his post race comments here, Pogačar's here and Remco Evenepoel's here. As always, thank you so much for your lovely messages and thoughtful questions. It's been a pleasure to cover the Tour de France 2025 stages but I'm now off to see the Tour in real life with a trip to France next week! I'll be back for the Tour de France Femmes, so come find me then on the live blog.
Here's today's race report from Jeremy Whittle in Peyragudes:
Looking ahead to tomorrow, Matt has emailed in and is ready for the riders to tackle the Tourmalet on stage 14:
Afternoon Amy
Sat in the camper on Tourmalet following your fantastic updates. You can see the vans lining the route 24 hours early.
6.21pm CEST
18:21
Here are the pictures from today's podium in Peyragudes:
6.15pm CEST
18:15
Also, a very disappointed Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick-Step) has spoken about today's time trial. The world ITT champion was overtaken by Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) shortly before the finish line. Evenepoel said:
It was bad. With a normal feeling I should be in the top three on a day like this. I was really bad, [there is] no explanation.
My start was good [but] five minutes in I wasn't feeling good and couldn't push the power. It was a very bad from me.
6.10pm CEST
18:10
After today's stage, Jonas Vingegaard spoke to the media. He said:
Yesterday was one of my worst performances and today was one of my best. So, I think I can be happy with today.
Reflecting on stage 12, the Danish rider said:
Yesterday was a terrible day for us. Until the last climb I felt good and then it was like lights out. So, to come back today [is good].
He added:
I still believe in myself. I just have to keep trying. I don't know what it was yesterday. To be honest, it was my second bad day and I normally don't have bad days. I hope to not have any more bad days.
The Visma-Lease a Bike rider said:
The Tour is far from over. We have to keep believing we can do something. The team is strong and we need to show it.
6.04pm CEST
18:04
Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates XRG), 37pts
Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious), 27pts
Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), 27pts
Michael Woods (Israel-Premier Tech), 22pts
Ben Healy (EF Education-Easypost), 16pts
6.02pm CEST
18:02
Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek), 231pts
Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates XRG), 203pts
Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck), 173pts
Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty), 154pts
Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step), 150pts
6.01pm CEST
18:01
Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates XRG), 45hrs, 45mins +51secs
Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), +4mins 7secs
Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step), +7mins 24secs
Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), +7mins 30secs
Oscar Onley (Picnic-PostNL), +8mins 11secs
Kévin Vauquelin (Arkéa-B&B Hotels), +8mins 15secs
Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), +8mins 50secs
Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility), +10mins 36secs
Felix Gall (Decathlon-Ag2R La Mondiale), +11mins 43 secs
Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike), +14mins 15secs
5.48pm CEST
17:48
Straight on the turbo to warm down, Tadej Pogačar has spoken to reporters and has said he is 'super happy' about today's win.
Of the mountain time trial, the mountain time trial rider said:
This time trial was a quite a big question mark, already in December, for me. I wanted everything to be perfect and the team delivered in the final moment.
Pogačar added:
I had an easy day in the morning. I was targeting to go all out from the start to the finish. [I] almost blew up in the end but I saw the timer on the top [of the finish] and it gave me an extra push because I saw I was going to win.
Asked about his bike choice, the Slovenian rider explained:
This was the biggest decision – which bike today. Obviously we're racing on road bikes most of the year. We did calculations. If you cannot push on the TT bike as much as on the road bike … I decided to be more comfortable and ride on the same bike I've ridden for the last 12 stages, and it worked out well for me.
Pogačar said that he decided to go without the radio on the ITT and rode it on feeling and instinct. 'In the last 3km, I took a deep breath and dropped a bit of power as I knew the last part was really steep and I wanted to come to the last part with good legs,' he added.
Updated
at 5.54pm CEST
5.31pm CEST
17:31
1. Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG)
2. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), +36secs
3. Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), +1min 20secs
4. Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), +1min 56secs
5. Luke Plapp (Jayco Alula), +1min 58secs
5.30pm CEST
17:30
I think that was probably the least surprising win of the Tour so far. Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates XRG) dominated and finished the 10.9km mountain time trial in 23mins. He's taken his fourth stage win of the Tour de France 2025 and he's the youngest rider to have ever won 21 TdF stages.
Updated
at 5.35pm CEST
5.28pm CEST
17:28
Vingegaard is gaining on Evenepoel. He overtakes him and takes 44secs out of Roglič's time. We have a new leader … for now.
Updated
at 5.28pm CEST
5.26pm CEST
17:26
Oscar Onley has finished at fourth fastest so far. He's 46secs behind Roglič time. This could mean good things for him in the GC ranking.
5.24pm CEST
17:24
But wait, Pogačar is coming and he's 23secs faster than Vingegaard at the 7.6km mark.
Updated
at 5.24pm CEST
5.23pm CEST
17:23
Evenepoel reaches down and manages to fix the issue. Vingegaard takes the best time at 7.6km – he's 29secs faster than Roglič!
5.21pm CEST
17:21
Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) whizzed through that, at an average pace of 26.9km/h. He knocks Luke Plapp off the top spot, shaving 38secs off the leading time.
Pogačar is coming up fast. Evenepoel isn't looking as if he's having the best day. He's had a gear issue!
5.18pm CEST
17:18
Matteo Jorgenson sets the second best time at the finish at 5secs slower than Plapp. Romain Bardet on the moto has been near Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick-Step) and he says his cadence doesn't look the best. The commentators on TNT Sports said Evenepoel was seen shaking his head.
5.13pm CEST
17:13
Pogačar is the fastest through the first time check. He covers the first 4km in 5mins 28secs. That's 5secs faster than Evenepoel and 8secs faster than Vingegaard.
A fan shouts to Vingegaard: 'Come on Jonas! All the way!'
5.09pm CEST
17:09
Visma-Lease a bike radio Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) to say 'really concentrate on yourself'. Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick-Step), the ITT world champion, is 10secs faster than Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike) after four kilometres. Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) is getting the pundits excited as he storms through this mountain time trial – he's 30secs up on Plapp's time at the moment.
Updated
at 5.09pm CEST
5.06pm CEST
17:06
Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates XRG) has rolled up to the ramp to start his ITT effort shortly. Unlike Vingegaard, he's opted for a road bike and helmet. Apparently the paint has been shaved off his bike to save grams.
Updated
at 5.15pm CEST
5.04pm CEST
17:04
Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick-Step) is off! Two minutes later and Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) rolls down the ramp to huge cheers from the crowds. He's on a time trial bike and wearing an aero (very futuristic) looking helmet.
Updated
at 5.15pm CEST
5.03pm CEST
17:03
So, before the top three of the GC contenders start, let me squeeze in this query from Dave:
Not bike-related. Don't suppose you know what those birds are? We saw them yesterday too. They definitely look like birds of prey but the curved neck looks odd.
There's been a lot of chat actually about the birds today, especially by Adam Blythe. He thought it was some kind of vulture and a viewer got in touch to tell him the birds you can see in the coverage are Eurasian griffon vultures. I am no bird expert, so apologies if this is incorrect but that is the best intel I have right now.
5.00pm CEST
17:00
So, we're getting to the business end of today's mountain time trial.
The top 10 GC riders are up, with riders setting off now every two minutes until Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) goes at 5.05pm CEST/4.05pm BST. So far, of the top 10, Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike), Felix Gall (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility), Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Oscar Onley (Picnic-PostNL), Kévin Vauquelin (Arkéa-B&B Hotels) and Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) have started.
4.55pm CEST
16:55
Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) is off! I've been waiting all day to post this:
Updated
at 4.55pm CEST
4.52pm CEST
16:52
Here are some more pictures from today's ITT:
4.49pm CEST
16:49
Despite it looking like Adam Yates might challenge the current leader, Luke Plapp, the UAE Team Emirates rider lost 13secs to Plapp in the last 3.3km. Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) is off and Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike) rolls off down the ramp to start his efforts. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) in an aero helmet has been spotted making his way towards the waiting area.
4.41pm CEST
16:41
Adam Yates is not far off Luke Plapp's time. At 7.6km in, he's only 4secs behind the current ITT leader. His brother, Simon Yates, is now on the course too.
4.38pm CEST
16:38
Away from the Tour, the Guardian Sport team have launched an account on the Bluesky social media platform. You can find and follow it here.
4.33pm CEST
16:33
Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) has started, Quinn Simmons (Lid-Trek) has been high-fiving spectators on the final ramp to the finish and Harry Sweeny (EF Education-Easypost) finishes 55sec slower than the leading time (24mins 58secs).
4.22pm CEST
16:22
Julian Alaphillipe (Tudor Pro Cycling) finished in the third fastest time so far today, completing the ITT in 26mins 3secs. It's a good day for the French cyclists as Bruno Armirail (Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale) finishes in the top five with a time of 1min 14secs slower than leader Luke Plapp (Jayco-Alula). With so many strong riders coming through, the rankings in the top five keep switching (not the lead yet!).
Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) has completed his final Tour time trial!
Updated
at 4.25pm CEST
4.15pm CEST
16:15
Neil wants to know what the steepest angle is on the final ramp of this course. There's a 16% gradient in the final kilometre. This profile from official Tour de France website shows how tough this ITT route is.
4.08pm CEST
16:08
If you're wondering how long the gaps are between the riders being set off, here is how it works from what I've gleaned from the Tour website:
From the first rider today (Mattéo Vercher) there will be a rider set off at one minute intervals up to the 51st rider (Robert Stannard). After that, the rider will be set off at 1min 30sec intervals until the 161st rider (Ben Healy). From Healy, there will then be two minute gaps for the remaining ten riders to tackle the ITT.
3.52pm CEST
15:52
Hannah Walker has been speaking to Matt Stephens on TNT Sports again about bike set ups. She says that the 'variations are endless', even within the same team. She said that while a number of riders have gone for a road bike for the mountain time trial, some have chosen their most aero road bike while others have selected their climbing road bikes.
According to Walker, Jonas Vingegaard is going for a matte black time trial bike with shallow wheels. Tadej Pogačar, she says, is going for a black aero road bike with a 53/39 gear ratio – the same as he rode on his recon. Walker adds that a lot of the riders, including Oscar Onley, have relied on their team's data analysts about what would be their best option.
Stephens also makes a good point abut the bike brands that each team are partnered with. Some brands have heavier TT bikes than others and the reverse, he says.
On an unrelated note, the Lidl-Trek team bus has a slushy dispenser and some of the riders are having the iced drink in their bidons as they warm up.
Updated
at 4.01pm CEST
3.43pm CEST
15:43
Half of the riders have finished now. Notable finishes: Clément Champoussin (third placed currently, with a time of 1min 22secs slower than Plapp), Alexey Lutsenko (fourth and 2mins 18 secs slower than Plapp) and Tobias Foss (fifth and 2mins 26secs slower than Plapp).
3.39pm CEST
15:39
I've had a lot of emails about Pogačar's dominance – look what you started Roland.
Brian makes a good point:
On 'where's the interest now?' given Pog's very likely dominance of this year's GC, perhaps it will allow the teams, and us, to focus on each individual stage as a race in itself, like a selection box of summer classics to be gorged one after another.
You're making me crave chocolate now.