Belgium’s Tim Merlier won his second stage at this year’s Tour de France on Sunday, outsprinting Jonathan Milan and Arnaud De Lie in Châteauroux, but the real story of the day was an incredible day-long break from Alpecin-Deceuninck pair Mathieu van der Poel and Jonas Rickaert.

Pogačar is the overwhelming favorite to win a fourth Tour title and has been the best rider since the start of the Tour last weekend.

Tim Merlier powered past Jonathan Milan to win stage nine of the Tour de France on Sunday, denying the green jersey holder back-to-back wins after Mathieu van der Poel's audacious solo attack ended in heartbreak just 700 metres from the finish.

Tadej Pogacar took the 100th victory of his stellar career on Tuesday, beating Mathieu van der Poel and Jonas Vingegaard to win stage four of the Tour de France.

After a wild start to the 2025 Tour de France, which has seen crashes and crosswinds cause havoc in the peloton to go with some sensation racing and memorable wins, the race finally reaches the mountains – or at least some very big hills.

Tadej Pogacar may be concentrating intensely on winning his fourth Tour de France, but in the middle of Saturday's stage eight he was just as focused on how his partner Urska Zigart was performing in the Giro d'Italia Women.

Two days later, on stage four to Rouen, Vingegaard resembled one of the world’s best puncheurs, as well as one of its best climbers. Following Pogacar’s attack in the closing kilometres, Vingegaard produced the best one-minute power effort of his career, matching the Slovenian’s famed acceleration.