Tadej Pogacar is on the verge of securing a record-equalling fifth Tour de France title, but man, Stage 20 was an absolute roller coaster. Ecuador’s Richard Carapaz took a clutch victory on Alpe d’Huez, while American Sepp Kuss went down twice in the final few kilometers while leading. If Pogacar just avoids a race-ending crash on Sunday’s final stage into Paris, where the standings are traditionally locked, he’s going to join the absolute legends of the sport with five overall wins. Think Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, and Miguel Indurain. That’s some serious company for the 27-year-old from UAE Team Emirates-XRG.
Pogacar’s Selfless Ride and Carapaz’s Mountain Mastery
Pogacar didn’t just ride for himself on the Tour’s grueling “queen” stage. He finished fourth, yeah, but he was actively helping his Mexican team-mate Isaac del Toro. That move provisionally sealed third place for del Toro on the overall podium and locked up the young rider classification’s white jersey. Pogacar is going to claim his fifth overall yellow jersey in Paris with a lead of six minutes and 26 seconds over Belgium’s Remco Evenepoel. Evenepoel, riding for Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, actually put in a late charge to finish the stage in second, just 26 seconds behind Carapaz, but it wasn’t enough to close that gap. Meanwhile, Carapaz, the 2019 Giro d’Italia winner from EF Education-Easypost, not only grabbed his second stage win in three days, but also secured victory in the king of the mountains competition. His explosive riding has been something else to watch.
Kuss’s Heart-Stopping Crashes and a Wild Stage Twist
Stage 20 was designed to be absolutely brutal, the most demanding of the whole race, with riders climbing 5,450 meters across three ‘hors category’ climbs over 170.9km, finishing in Alpe d’Huez. American Kuss, from Visma-Lease a Bike, was part of a big early breakaway and even attacked alone with about 25km to go. He looked strong, like he did winning the Vuelta a Espana in 2023, and seemed set for the win. But Kuss, who’s usually unflappable, was pushing it hard. He crashed on a right-hand corner, his rear wheel sliding on dust, and almost went off a sheer drop if not for some safety netting. He held his lead after that close call, but then crashed *again* coming out of a tunnel approaching Alpe d’Huez town. That’s when Carapaz swept past him and into the lead. And get this, race organizers ASO announced that Sunday’s finale is getting cut down from 133km to 89km because emergency services are getting redirected to tackle devastating wildfires in the south-west of the country. This means the famous Champs Elysees sprint battle might get a twist with a new section over Montmartre opening it up for riders with more sustained power.
Sunday’s the day. Pogacar just needs to get through it to etch his name into history with that fifth yellow jersey. But with a shortened final stage and new sections, will we see another breakaway win shake things up one last time? You know I’ll be glued to it.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by BBC Sport.
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