Jonas Vingegaard remains confident he can still beat Tour de France leader Tadej Pogačar, despite losing another nine seconds to the UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider on the final climb of the brutal Col de la Loze on stage 18.

Unlike in 2023, when the Visma-Lease a Bike captain managed to outdistance Pogačar on the 26.5-kilometer climb, virtually securing the Tour victory, this time Vingegaard had to watch helplessly as the Slovenian broke away in the finale.

The defeat, though minimal in terms of time, must have stung particularly well considering that Vingegaard and his team had torn the race to pieces on the Col de la Madeleine, isolating Pogačar in a very small group of riders in the yellow jersey.

"Today was a brutal day, five hours in the saddle. I'm not sure I've ever ridden such a tough stage at the Tour," Vingegaard commented at the finish. "I felt good, the team was in good shape, we had big plans—you could tell we tried to attack early. Unfortunately, we weren't able to gain time on Tadej."

Visma-Lease a Bike did exactly what Pogačar had predicted after stage 17, placing Matteo Jorgenson in the initial breakaway. But it was on the Madeleine that the team really upped the pace, with a series of attacks that reduced the leading group to just four riders.

Despite the situation not being the best and only one mountain stage remaining before Paris, Vingegaard remains confident: "I think we looked pretty even. He gained a few seconds, but the Tour isn't over." When asked if he still believes in the final victory, the Dane replied firmly: "Yes, I still believe in it."