Pogačar ready for the Tour de France after winning Critérium du Dauphiné
PARIS (AP) — Tadej Pogačar produced a dominant display ahead of his Tour de France defense by winning the Critérium du Dauphiné for the first time.
The UAE Team Emirates rider finished 59 seconds ahead of second-placed Jonas Vingegaard overall after controlling the eighth and final 133-kilometer (83-mile) stage on Sunday from Val-d'Arc to the Plateau du Mont-Cenis.
'Once again today, the team did a great job,' Pogačar said. 'We managed to defend the jersey and we can go home happy and prepare for the Tour.'
Pogačar will seek his fourth Tour de France title in July.
The Slovenian finished third Sunday with the same time as his major rival, two-time Tour champion Vingegaard of Visma-Lease a Bike, who was second.
Lenny Martinez won the final stage in 3 hours, 34 minutes, 18 seconds for Bahrain Victorious, atop the Plateau du Mont-Cenis located on the French-Italian border. The French rider finished 34 seconds ahead of Vingegaard and Pogačar.
Pogačar reacted with ease to Vingegaard's attack on the final climb to Col du Mont-Cenis in a tough race that Tour contenders use to fine-tune their preparations.
After winning the opening stage, outsprinting Vingegaard and Mathieu van der Poel, Pogačar went on the attack in the mountains.
He took charge by winning the sixth stage on Friday, climbing to the finish line alone to beat Vingegaard by 1:01 and take an overall lead of 43 seconds over the Dane.
He captured the seventh stage on Saturday in a similar fashion, beating Vingegaard by 14 seconds and extending his overall lead to 1:01.
Sunday's stage was the last day of Romain Bardet's professional career. The Frenchman, who is retiring, finished second in the 2016 Tour.
___
AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/apf-sports
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Toronto Star
18 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
Red Sox trade Rafael Devers to Giants in blockbuster deal
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Boston Red Sox traded Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants on Sunday in a blockbuster deal. Devers' agent, Nelson Montes de Oca, confirmed that the slugger had been traded to San Francisco. ESPN reported that the package of players going back to the Red Sox includes starter Jordan Hicks and left-hander Kyle Harrison. Devers, 28, is one of baseball's most feared hitters. He is batting .272 with 15 homers and 58 RBIs in 73 games after he connected for a solo drive in Boston's 2-0 victory over the New York Yankees on Sunday. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Devers, a three-time All-Star, agreed to a US $313.5 million, 10-year contract in January 2023, but his relationship with the Red Sox began to deteriorate when the team signed third baseman Alex Bregman during spring training. Devers insisted he was the team's third baseman before switching to designated hitter. When Triston Casas was sidelined by a season-ending knee injury, the Red Sox approached Devers about filling in at first base. He declined, and suggested the front office ' should do their jobs ' and look for another player. A day after Devers' comments to the media about playing first, Red Sox owner John Henry, team president Sam Kennedy and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow flew to Kansas City to meet with Devers and manager Alex Cora. Bregman has been out since May 23 with a strained right quadriceps, similar to his left quad strain that cost him 58 games for the Houston Astros in 2021. The Red Sox improved to 37-36 with their three-game sweep against New York. But they are fourth in the AL East, trailing the division-leading Yankees by 6 1/2 games. Devers first signed with Boston as an international free agent in August 2013. He was 20 when he made his major league debut with the Red Sox on July 25, 2017. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW He helped the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series and led the team in RBIs for five consecutive seasons from 2020-24. He has finished in the top 20 in voting for AL MVP five times. Devers is not the first Red Sox All-Star to be traded away: The team sent Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers before the 2020 season — just a year after he won the AL MVP award and led Boston to a franchise-record 108 wins and its fourth World Series title since 2004. ___ AP MLB:
Winnipeg Free Press
30 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Palmeiras and Porto draw 0-0 in their first Club World Cup match
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Palmeiras and two-time European champion Porto tied 0-0 in their opening match of the Club World Cup on Sunday night before a crowd of 46,275 at MetLife Stadium, which was just over half full. Estevão's left-footed shot in first-half stoppage time went into the hands of Claúdio Ramos, and Richard Ríos' attempt off the rebound was blocked. Palmeiras, Brazil's club champion in 2022 and '23, qualified as the 2021 Copa Libertadores winner, while Porto reached the tournament as Europe's fifth-ranked eligible team over a four-year period. Palmeiras had a 17-11 advantage in shots and 55.3% possession. Its fans took over a side of the stadium, waving flags and cheering or the entire match. Key Moment Ramos' double save in first-half stoppage time. Takeaways There is a four-way tie in Group A, which opened with Inter Miami and Al Ahly's drawing 0-0 on Saturday, Palmeiras will face 12 -time African champion Al Ahly on Thursday in East Rutherford and Porto will play Miami the same day in Atlanta. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. ___ AP soccer:
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
J.J. Spaun overcomes five early bogeys to win the U.S. Open at rain-soaked Oakmont
OAKMONT, Pa. (AP) — J.J. Spaun overcomes five early bogeys to win the U.S. Open at rain-soaked Oakmont.
