Comments on stage 6: "It's going to be a hell of a fight all the way to Paris"
Thomas Goldmann
· 06.07.2023
Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma), in an official interview:
"First of all, I'm very happy to have the yellow jersey. That's always nice. Of course I was hoping to win the stage. But in the end, Tadej was very strong and deserved to win. We wanted to test him again today and see how he felt. I think he felt better today than yesterday. It's going to be a hell of a fight all the way to Paris and a good fight, I think. I'm looking forward to it. I'm where I want to be. The Tour de France is still very long - anything can happen. The team was exceptional again today. I have to thank my team-mates."
Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates), in the official winner interview:
"I wouldn't call it revenge, but the victory today tastes sweet and it's good to get some time back. I feel a bit relieved, much better now. Who wouldn't have been worried after yesterday? Jonas' performance yesterday was incredible. When they started on the Tourmalet I thought to myself: 'Shit, now it's going the same way as yesterday, we can pack our bags and go home'. But luckily I had good legs today and was able to ride well on the Tourmalet. When I realised at the end that the right moment had come, I attacked. That was a big relief. I would say the gap to Jonas is almost perfect now. I think it will be a big fight until the last stage."
Felix Großschartner (UAE Team Emirates), on Eurosport:
"Jumbo-Visma rode very fast on the Tourmalet. In the end, the two of them were incredibly strong again. They had their own duel at the front and I'm super happy that Tadej won and got time back. We have to remain very focussed. There's still a long way to go until Paris. But today was a good day for us."
Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe), on Eurosport:
"It was an epic day, riding in the yellow jersey over some mythical climbs. I enjoyed it. I wanted to ride my own race and did my best, but then I was dropped around four kilometres before the summit (of the Tourmalet; editor's note). That was it. From then on, it was pretty much lights out."
Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma), at Eurosport:
"We're happy with the way we played out. We wanted to do something today. Everything went quite well. Pogacar is such a fighter that he wanted to hit back today. That was an impressive performance from him, but I think we can be satisfied with the way we organised the race. We wanted to make the race tough, especially on the Tourmalet. But that depended on whether we had riders in the front group. We knew that Wout van Aert would still be at the front at the summit and Jonas wanted to try and break away on his own. In the end, the two guys pulled away together. You never want to lose time, but as I said, we should be happy with the approach we took in today's stage. It could have gone the other way."
