Here’s why Pogacar didn’t win in the final week according to Storer: “The crowd…”

The third week of the Tour de France didn’t excite the fans and, surprisingly, didn’t feature any stage wins by Tadej Pogacar. There was much discussion about his attitude and why he didn’t ride aggressively, with many theories circulating. Several days later, Michael Storer, a rider for Tudor who participated in the Tour, shared his thoughts.

The Australian, speaking on the show Domestique Hotseat, explained what he witnessed from inside the peloton, suggesting that Pogacar and UAE’s decisions may have been influenced by what was happening on the roadsides:

“I know that, on at least one occasion, Tadej decided not to win the stage. It was stage 14, the one finishing at Superbagnères, which Thymen Arensman ended up winning. I found it strange that day that UAE had ridden full gas all day, only for Pogacar to do nothing on the final climb. From what I was told, there were jeers and signs of disapproval from the crowd along the route, and so the team directors decided it was better for Pogacar not to win that day, to keep the French fans on their side.”

“And I think they took that into account for the final week of the Tour as well: they didn’t want to win everything. At La Plagne, maybe he didn’t have the legs, but at Superbagnères he explicitly told his teammates he didn’t want to win. But if you already know you don’t want to win, you might as well let the break go early and not drain your whole team all day. Maybe I’m a bit too old school, but that would make a lot more sense in my opinion. Especially because you could see the UAE guys were very tired at the end of the Tour, and even Tadej looked worn out.”

“I don’t think racing that way can be considered a defensive approach. I believe someone like Pogacar shouldn’t aim to win every single stage. Sometimes, when the big teams let the break go, it’s almost like they’ve decided to let you win. Then again, sometimes the breakaway stays away even when the peloton wants to bring them back. In those cases, it’s still a meaningful win. At the 2025 Vuelta a España, Tadej won’t be there, and maybe we’ll see breakaways with 10-minute leads again. But then again, I won’t be there either…”

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