Pogacar rules supreme
June 14 th 2025 - 16:25
After a first display of dominance in Combloux, Tadej Pogacar dominated the highest summits of the Critérium du Dauphiné 2025 to win stage 7 on Saturday. Visma-Lease a Bike tried to put pressure on UAE Team Emirates-XRG on the ascents of the Col de la Madeleine and Col de la Croix de Fer. Romain Bardet revived his great memories from the area with yet another long range attack. But in the end, nobody could match Pogacar’s pace when he attacked 12 kilometres away from the finish at Valmeinier 1800. The world champion takes his third victory in this Critérium du Dauphiné, the 10th this year, the 12th since he claimed the rainbow jersey and his 98th as a professional rider. Will he make it 100 on the final day of the race, tomorrow, with another mountain stage towards Val-Cenis? His overall lead is up to 1’01’’ over Jonas Vingegaard.
On the day after Tadej Pogacar’s victory in Combloux, it’s time to face the higher summits of the Critérium du Dauphiné 2025. Starting from Grand-Aigueblanche, the riders will reach 2,000 metres of altitude at Col de la Madeleine and Col de la Croix de Fer before tackling the final ascent to Valmeinier 1800. With three HC-climbs and 4,800 metres of elevation, this is the queen stage fo this 77th edition.
A brutal battle up La Madeleine
A 135-man peloton set off at noon and a fierce battle immediately unfolds on the way up the first HC-climb of the Critérium du Dauphiné 2025. Visma-Lease a Bike are especially willing to make the break. Victor Campenaerts is the first attacker of the day. Matteo Jorgenson also tries to go, before Sepp Kuss eventually gets away in a 15-man group built in several waves.
Valentin Paret-Peintre (Soudal Quick-Step) and Bruno Armirail (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) led the way from km 8. And they were gradually joined by more attackers until the group settles at km 23 with Kuss, Santiago Buitrago, Torstein Traeen (Bahrain Victorious), Sergio Higuita (XDS Astana), Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost), Ivan Romeo (Movistar), Andreas Lekessund (Uno-X Mobility), Clément Braz Afonso (Groupama-FDJ), Alexey Lutsenko (Israel Premier-Tech), Romain Bardet, Juan Guillermo Martinez (Picnic PostNL), Louis Meintjes (Intermarché-Wanty) and Jordan Jegat (TotalEnergies).
The race explodes again at La Croix de Fer
Tadej Pogacar’s UAE Team Emirates-XRG set the pace in the bunch. The intensity is still high on the Col de la Croix de Fer. Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet sets off from the bunch and manages to bridge the gap to the front group while V. Paret-Peintre is dropped. At that point, the gap hits a maximum of 2’05’’ (km 64).
Behind them, Visma-Lease a Bike brutally up the ante, which also forces the front riders to accelerate. At the summit, Buitrago goes first. Only 18’’ behind, Matteo Jorgenson leads a very reduced GC group featuring Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Ste), Maxim Van Gils, Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Tobias Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility), Paul Seixas (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale).
Pogacar sets off to Valmeinier 1800
Onto the downhill, Bardet accelerates towards Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, where he had claimed his first Tour de France stage win, in 2015. Pavel Sivakov (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) returns to the bunch to control the gap. At the bottom of the final climb to Valmeinier 1800, Bardet leads by 35’’.
The French climber is caught 13 kilometres away from the summit. Kuss attacks, Sivakov controls… And Pogacar attacks with 12 km to go. Vingegaard tries to resist, with Lipowitz on his wheel. But the slope puts everyone in their place.
At the summit, Pogacar celebrates and takes victory 14’’ ahead of Vingegaard, who trailed by 30’’ with one kilometre to go. Lipowitz completes the top-3 on the day (+1’21’’) ahead of Johannessen (+2’26’’) and Evenepoel (+2’39’’).
