The pothole clip from an Essex club ride was a grim little reminder that cycling can turn chaotic in a split second. One moment the group is rolling along; the next, a deep hole sends a rider flying and everyone else is suddenly improvising like acrobats. James Holdfast’s line that “Potholes can change a ride within seconds” is hardly dramatic overstatement. It is simply true.
But the real story on the day was not a social-media crash clip. It was Tadej Pogačar doing what he has been doing to this Tour de France with alarming efficiency: winning again, winning alone, and making the general classification look increasingly one-sided. On the Col de Pertus in the Massif Central, he blasted clear to take his third stage victory, his 24th Tour stage overall, and his third victory on France’s national holiday.
By the end of the 10th stage, the margin was already becoming uncomfortable for everyone else. Pogačar led Jonas Vingegaard by 3:36 after a winning move that left no real doubt about who controlled the race. That is a serious gap this early in a Grand Tour, and it matters even more because he was not repeating the 2024 upset in Le Lioran. This time, there was no collapse, no surprise reversal, no opening for rivals to lean on. He won cleanly and extended the lead by 32 seconds on the day.
A race that is slipping away early
That is the part the rest of the peloton will not enjoy hearing. After only 10 stages, a lead of 3:36 is not a cushion. It is a warning sign. It says one rider is not just in form, but in control. Vingegaard remains second, but being second and being threatened are two very different things. Right now, Pogačar looks like he has turned this Tour into a series of tests the others are failing to solve.
The numbers are blunt. Three stage wins. A 24th Tour stage. A 3:36 lead. And all of it built without the drama of a lucky break or a gifted day. He simply went clear on the Pertus in the Massif Central and did the job properly. In a race as punishing as this, that kind of authority is often more decisive than one spectacular moment.
There will always be side stories in cycling, especially when something as ugly as a poor road surface or a bad lodging situation grabs attention. And yes, Tour de France rider lodging may irritate riders in ways fans never fully see. But results like this cut through everything else. When a rider is stretching the race this early, the debate stops being about discomfort and starts being about control.
Pogačar has that control right now. The Tour is still alive, but the leaderboard is starting to look as if it has already picked a winner.
