With 22 Tour de France stages, the Slovenian champion is already fifth in the all-time rankings. The numbers suggest the record is within his reach.
Like it or not, Tadej Pogačar is a record-breaker. His dominance across the board, from the Grands Prix to the Monument Classics, has already cemented him as one of the greatest cyclists of all time. He is the first rider to win a Monument five consecutive times, the first to reach the podium of all five Monuments in the same season, and the first to reach the podium in the world's top ten stage races. This year, he's on the verge of tying the record for overall victories at the Tour de France, aiming to join the legendary club of five-time winners.
And as if that weren't enough, on Monday he took another step towards one of cycling's most controversial records: the number of stage wins at the Tour. By winning his 22nd stage atop Les Angles on the third stage of the 2026 Grande Boucle, Pogačar moved into fifth place overall in the ranking of all-time stage winners, tied with André Darrigade and behind only André Leducq, Bernard Hinault, Eddy Merckx and Mark Cavendish .
The current record belongs to Cavendish himself, with 35 stage victories , set in 2024, beating Merckx's record of 34, which had stood since 1975. Pogačar still has 13 to match him and 14 to surpass him. Seems far away? The numbers tell a different story.
This puts him in excellent company: it's the same average as Bernard Hinault (28 total victories, third all-time) and significantly higher than that of Leducq and Darrigade, whom he will soon overtake in the rankings. Above all, 3.5 victories per edition is significantly better than Cavendish's average, which took him 15 editions to reach 35. Pogačar is much more efficient.
It's worth remembering that Merckx has the highest win rate ever: 34 stages in just seven editions. However, in the Cannibal era, the Tour often featured more than 21 stages, with prologues and split stages, which makes the comparison somewhat blurry.
Projecting the data into the future: if Pogačar continues to win 3.5 stages per year , he will reach 35 stages by the 2029 Tour, equaling Cavendish. With four stages per edition, he would reach 33 in 2028 and break the record in 2029. With five or six stages – a pace he has already demonstrated he can maintain in both the 2024 Giro and the 2024 Tour – the record could fall as early as 2028.
Sports journalist and cycling enthusiast, following professional cycling for over 10 years. Collaborates with FantaCycling to bring you the best analysis and news from the world of cycling.
Kanter and Merlier defeated
With 22 Tour de France stages, the Slovenian champion is already fifth in the all-time rankings. The numbers suggest the record is within his reach.
