“I thought van Aert would go all the way”

Tadej Pogacar has already taken power in the Tour de France. The Slovenian won the 6th stage, Thursday at Longwy, and took the yellow worn by Wout van Aert. “It’s not especially the yellow that I wanted, I’m especially happy to have won”, confided the rider of UAE Team Emirates at the microphone of the organization.

Pogacar, 23, takes his seventh stage victory in the Tour de France. “Every time I win, it’s better,” smiled the Slovenian. “Today was really tough. The first two hours were flat out. The strongest was in the breakaway, and behind him there were several teams, including mine, to lead the chase. »

Yellow jersey Wout van Aert, American Quinn Simmons and Dane Jakob Fuglsang escaped after 75 km of racing. Van Aert stayed in front up to 10 terminals from the line. “I thought he would go all the way. At the end, I felt good, my teammates did the job perfectly. »

Pogacar won at the top of the final bump in Longwy. “It wasn’t a pure sprint. We rode the last two hills very fast. I placed a first acceleration in the penultimate climb, because I was afraid that someone else would do it. It was a good test for my legs. I had the good legs to win in the end. »

The victory earned him the lead in the general standings. “It wasn’t particularly the yellow that I wanted. I’m especially happy to have won. We will think about yellow the next few days. »