4 hours ago
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Key events
66km to go: Over the Aspin and onto the bendy descent. Valentin Paret-Peintre – older brother of Aurelien – dangles off the front too early before the top. Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious) just about holds him off in the sprint for 10 King of the Mountains points, or does he? Photo finish.
69km to go: The bunch is lined out. Paul Seixas is positioned mid-pack and his climbing helper Aurelien Paret-Peintre is off the back, as is King of the Mountains leader Alex Baudin, white jersey Mathias Vacek and Sean Quinn, second-placed in GC. With race leader Torstein Træen glued to the back wheel of Vingegaard, it looks like the American will not be taking the yellow jersey.
72km to go: UAE Team Emirates-XRG look lean and mean. Four domestiques in a line leading the 40-strong bunch, followed by Pogacar then Del Toro. Tim Wellens has taken over pace-setting from Politt. O’Connor is back in the fold.
Matthew Lysaght sends me an email, asking: “At what stage will we see the expected acceleration from Tadej that destroys the peloton, crests the Tourmalet alone, and hammer up the final climb into the Maillot Jaune?
Also, every time I see Quinn Simmons in his garish National Champs jersey and that on-brand hair/moustache combo, I actively wish for a puncture.”
In the middle of the Tourmalet, the steepest section where pitches reach 10 per cent would be my best guess. There will be a slight tailwind on the climb too.
74km to go: We’re halfway up the Aspin. Lidl-Trek leader Juan Ayuso had a mechanical problem at the foot of the climb and took a few kilometres to get back on.
A stage winner in all three grand tours, Ben O’Connor has 25 seconds. A latecomer to cycling, I believe he used to bat in his Perth school cricket team with Cameron Bancroft, he of “sandpapergate” notoriety.
77km to go: Scott Wedel writes in with a very relevant question: “Are they chasing O’Connor or setting up their later efforts by setting a hard pace? Could be looking to have a very select group over Col d’Aspin and then blow the race apart on the Tourmalet.”
Bit of both. I reckon UAE Team Emirates, whose enforcer Nils Politt is currently on the front onto the Col d’Aspin, fancy themselves as the strongest team here and imposing a tireless pace hurts their rivals and their domestiques, robbing them of some staying power on the Tourmalet. Then, keeping O’Connor at arm’s length means the stage win is within reach.
81 km to go: Andy’s now back from lunch to take the glory on the Col d’Aspin and the Tourmalet, etc. Enjoy.
84km to go: Sean Kelly is wondering why Uno-X Mobility are riding. Is it payback for the being allowed to take the yellow jersey with Torstein Træen, he asks Voigt on the Discovery Plus motorbike.
“The only reason I can see is they want to say thank you to Pogacar for handing over the jersey,” says Voigt.
“I will pass the question on to the team car, and I will send you a WhatsApp, so then you will know exactly. Is that a deal?”
Can’t say fairer than that.
85km to go: O’Connor has 1min 10sec on the bunch.
On-bike pundit Jens Voigt: “UAE riding is a clear sign that Tadej wants the stage.”
Hard to argue with that.
86km to go: Ben O’Connor had a chat with Discovery Plus before the stage.
Told that he wasn’t meant to come to the Tour in the team’s original plan for the season [he rode the Giro too], he says: “I was. The first half of season was about the Giro, I just didn’t say much about the Tour, but the plan was always to come here and try and win a stage.”
And what about today?
“Today’s a chance. A small one. But there’s alaways a chance. Things happen, there’s always context … we’ll try and do that today.
“The heat here has been pretty wild. That’s been the biggest factor, one we’ve got to be careful with … I think it’s in the balance between a GC day and a break today. In the final climb, if you are able to get over the Tourmalet, there is a chance on the final climb to maybe slip away … but you’ve got to get there first.”
93km to go: Halfway through the stage. It’s been highly active, to say the least, and the second half of the stage is looking awfully spiky, with a category-one, an HC and a category-two to come.
On the plus side for the riders, it’s not the furnace-like heat of a couple of days ago.
95km to go: O’Connor is 38min 23sec down on GC. He has 43sec on the chasing bunch. McEwen says there is no reason for UAE to be chasing like they are. That clearly isn’t true, but fair enough, you could see the sense in letting O’Connor have more time.
96km to go: It was a while ago now, but the intermediate sprint top five was as follows:
1) Pedersen
2) Campanaerts
3) Kanter
4) Philipsen
5) Girmay
99km to go: My telly tells me O’Connor has a lead of 41sec. The Australian taps out a strong pace, getting out of the saddle and trying to stretch his lead. I didn’t see it but the commentators say he just looked at the camera and shook his head, presumably wondering why UAE won’t let him go up the road and have a proper go at the stage on his own.
101km to go: O’Connor has forged a lead of 1min 12sec. Presumably, UAE Team Emirates are very happy to let a lone rider up the road. They don’t want to bring it back and have everything kick off again, so why not let O’Connor have his fun for a bit?
104km to go: And that Philipsen group out the back has now swelled to 10. Askey, Merlier, Bauhaus, Pedersen, Dillier, Eenkhorn, Otruba, Marsman, Allegaert are there with him.
105km to go: Philipsen and friends are 2min 45sec down on the bunch. Ouch. That is going to be a painful ride to make the time cut.
The average pace of the bunch is over 45km/h. Tim Wellens has taken it up at the front of UAE Team Emirates.
Ben O’Connor, always up for having a dig, is 24sec up on the peloton. Does anyone fancy joining him?
“He needs more men,” says Sean Kelly on commentary … “It’s very late in the day for a breakaway … I am concerned that UAE will keep the pressure on for Pogacar and blow this race apart … he might stamp his authority on the GC: ‘I’m here, I’m in the big shape, look at me.’”
108km to go: Now, it’s pretty much all uphill to the top of the Col d’Aspin. Another full-out descent, then the iconic Col du Tourmalet is next on the menu. There are 4,100m of climbing today, and they’ve done a mere 1,120m thus far.
109km to go: Ben O’Connor (Jayco–AlUla) and Xabier Azparren (Pinarello–Q36.5) have broken away to the top of the Côte de Mauvezin. O’Connor takes two points, Azaparren one. Looks like the pace will stay high …
110km to go: “Sorry to be a pedant,” emails Roland. “But Rob MacFadyen’s stunning photo (11.36am BST) is not the Cirque de Gavarnie from where, to see Spain, you have to rock climb several hundred metres of cliffs. It’s actually on what was the road to Port de Bucharo on the French / Spanish border from the Col des Tentes (where the road now stops, the tarmac on his photo is now an earthen track). That track is also one of the starting points for the hike up to the Brèche de Roland, a literal breach in the cliff face between France and Spain, several kilometres west of the Cirque de Gavarnie.
“To get to the Brèche de Roland, you have to scramble up towards and just below the glacier Rod mentions (the Glacier du Taillon); when I was last there in October 2021, it was still there (though admittedly there was a fair bit of late autumn snow already). I intended to go back in May 2024 but due to late snow and unseasonably low temperatures, we couldn’t even drive up to Col des Tentes due to snow closing the road. Given the current heat, if it is still there, it will be hanging on grimly.”
110.5km to go: That intrepid group of 10, who descended bravely to try and get away, have now been reeled in. Einer Rubio (Movistar) and Valentin Paret-Peintre (Soudal-Quick Step) are both prominent at the front. Still 1.5km go climb on the Côte de Mauvezin.
111km to go: “I am usually insanely jealous of all the folk roadside riding and watching the Tour,” emails Ollie. “In this weather, however, I’m content to be sat at my desk until I head out for week three.
“I’m struggling to understand Campanaerts’ efforts today. Surely he knew he wouldn’t go solo, there wasn’t enough of a group to be a satellite rider, and he will be needed to support Jonas throughout the tour. Are there any other explanations available? Perhaps by supporting Mads in his quest for the Green jersey they are trying to form an alliance with Lidl-Trek for later in the stage and tour?”
112km to go: Massively strung out, and a group of about 10 riders has now broken clear.
114km to go: It’s all strung out at the front as the riders fly down a descent towards the foot of the category-three Côte de Mauvezin. Plenty of riders trying to make it into a meaningful break, after Pedersen’s earlier assault on the intermediate sprint.
116km to go: The bunch is back together. But the pace is very very hot. There’s a group of four riders 90sec down: Philipsen, Gaviria, Marsman and Vanlerberghe.
Earlier, Marc Reef, the Visma – Lease A Bike race coach, was asked for his thoughts on the stage by Hannah Walker on Discovery Plus.
“It’s the first real big one. Something we’ve been looking forward to,” he said. “Unfortunately the only Pyrenees stage … with the Tourmalet, that’s where the action will be today … every race situation is good for Jonas, he’s well prepared with the Giro and with the last camp, and the first days [of the Tour], he’s been showing good shape. It doesn’t matter how it [the race] will be, he will be there on the Tourmalet.
“We’ll have to see how it unfolds, and from the top of the Tourmalet, we look further.”
118km to go: Big split in the bunch after an uncategorised ascent! Get to a telly.
It’ll probably all come back together but at this stage the front group has 16sec.
121km to go: On commentary, Robbie McEwen was saying Evenepoel should have gone for a pee on the bike rather than risk a stop.
122km to go: While I am here, for one hour only, you can mail me.
123km to go: Pedersen made a token attempt to try and stay out front with Campanaerts after the intermediate sprint – that was only polite – but he’s just popped on an uphill section. Campanaerts strikes out alone at the front but there is action behind, with attacks coming from the likes of Ben Healy (EF Education–EasyPost) as they pass Pedersen. The gap for Campanaerts is down to 10sec and he knows it’s only a matter of time.
124km to go: Thank you Andy and bon appetit.
Pedersen and Campanaerts will soon be caught by the bunch. I just said to Andy, imagine trying to go for a ride with those two. Both insanely strong.
127km to go. Fortune favours the brave. Mad dog Mads Pedersen leads Campenaerts across the intermediate sprint line at Pouzac. Twenty-five more points for his green jersey collection. Third for Kanter or Philipsen, photo finish…
At the back of the race, Remco Evenepoel stopped for a nature break and the commissaires created a barrage (a gap, meaning the returning riders cannot use the wake of team cars), so he is 30 seconds behnd the bunch. An avoidable expenditure of energy.
I’m off for lunch and Luke McLaughlin is going to take over and do some turns on the front of this blog.
131km to go. Matteo Jorgenson gives it a dig on the fourth-category Côte de Loucroup , splitting the bunch briefly, and Pedersen/Campenaerts’ lead is down to 30 seconds. Another Visma rider gives it a dig post-climb.
Abandon from Arvid de Kleijn (Tudor) at the back of the race, unable to handle this pace. He has been suffering for several days.
137km to go. So, an update on Artzgate, a dash of controversy enlivening the first hour of racing. TNT Sports pundit Jens Voigt on the race motorbike says the point of conflict was the position of Huub Artz’s hands, inside the handlebars, under the brake levers to get more aerodynamic on the bike. The argument being it is harder to control the bike and reach the brakes and contravenes UCI rules. He may be given a yellow card warning later.
142km to go. The bunch speeds through Lourdes, the GC outsiders maybe tempted to say a few Hail Marys. It looks good for Pedersen for the points with the bunch over a minute adrift. Apparently, Artz got a verbal warning. Game’s gone, I cannot see what he did wrong.
Paul Griffin writes in: “Regarding nominative deterministic pro-cyclists, I am absolutely apoplectic that you missed Alejandro Valve-rde.” Very good, Paul. There was also Steve Chain-el too before he retired.
150km to go. Sean Kelly has made the calculation and does not understand why Campenaerts is burning his energy in this breakaway on the flat, when he could sit in the bunch and bide his time for a bigger group.
Artz pats Pedersen on the back and sits up. Either he sees the futility of the effort or, as TNT’s pundits suggest, he’s been warned by the commissaires for an unnatural position and told to drop back. Strange.
1min 26secs lead for Pedersen and Campenaerts, averaging 50 kilometres per hour so far. Rapid.
160km to go. Without a Jacques Derailleur or Harry Helmet, Huub Artz is about as close as we will probably get for nominative determinism/bike part names, despite the extra vowel. He clearly has good legs, sprinting to fourth yesterday as Lotto try to make the best of being without leader Arnaud De Lie.
169km to go. Pedersen, Campenaerts and Artz press on, leading the bunch by 53 seconds. Why is the stage four winner out in front? Well, there is an intermediate sprint with 127km to go at Pouzac and he is looking to extend his advantage over Biniam Girmay.
The Eritrean’s NSN team have put a man on the front of the bunch.
177km to go. Hot off my inbox, a stage prediction from Nick Wayne:
“Which means, like all my others, it’ll be wrong: Lenny Martinez.”
He could do it. I wonder whether he is a bit too close to Pogacar/Vingegaard on GC to be afforded such freedom. I’ll pick Egan Bernal today – he’s won the Tour but never won a Tour stage.
183km to go. Victor Campenaerts attacks from the gun, joined by Huub Artz (Lotto Intermarché) and green jersey Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek).
The Belgian has been doing some entertaining vlogs daily on Instagram with Visma-Lease a Bike teammate Matteo Jorgenson, full of charm and history facts. You don’t get this kind of homespun, behind-the-scenes stuff from the World Cup, do you?
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Bold bicycle placement by Rod in that photo below. A strong gust of wind away from his steed ending up at the bottom of a ravine.
The bunch is bimbling south-east, about to start stage six. Christian Prudhomme waves the flag from his car.
We have mail! Not just that but a stonking photo from Rod MacFadyen of the Cirque du Gavarnie from 1990.
“During a cycling club week away to see the Tour, I cycled up to the Cirque de Gavarnie where the road stops and you can peer into Spain. On that day, a small glacier was visible in the peaks opposite - see my attached photo! What are the chances of that still being there?”
The flag is waved in Pau and the bunch rolls out into the neutralised zone.
Jonas Vingegaard says he “expects fireworks” today, which goes for fighting talk, coming from him. Wonder whether his Visma team will want to get a strong climber in the breakaway, someone who could drop back to help the Dane if he goes on the warpath.
Visma-Lease a Bike helper Bruno Armirail shown on TNT Sports signing in. Disappointingly, they just touch a screen these days rather than scrawling with a pen. Very 2026.
He has the local knowledge for today and no doubt friends and family members on the roadside: stage six passes through his home town of Bagnères-de-Bigorre after 60 kilometres.
Relive the last time the Tour de France finished on the Col du Tourmalet.
Vintage Pinot. Alas, six days later, he abandoned the 2019 race in tears with knee pain when still in contention to end France’s barren run. Where is he now? He is a full-time farmer, hosting some lucky Airbnb guests on his grounds when stage 13 goes through his village.
William Fotheringham's guide to stage six
William Fotheringham
Stage six, Thursday 9 July: Pau to Gavarnie-Gèdre, 186.2km
The Spanish Grand Départ means paring down the classic climbs in the Pyrenees to avoid the race being settled as early as day six; the organisers can reasonably argue that stages two, three and four are demanding enough to avoid claims the race is being watered down. This stage includes the Aspin and Tourmalet before the second-category drag up to Gavarnie and that is it for the Pyrenees. One or two riders will stake an early claim in the King of the Mountains prize; the stage winner should come from the break, a climber who is no threat overall such as Lenny Martinez.
Enjoy our full guide to all 21 Tour de France stages here:
So, Tadej Pogacar is clapped. Finished. Past it.
Delayed slightly by a crash in yesterday’s finale, he was only 21st over the line. A day after finishing 33rd. He has clearly lost his touch. Incidentally, those are the four-time champion’s two worst performances of 2026. Yesterday was only the third time he has finished outside of the top ten from 21 race days. Bonkers.
Points and mountains classification standings
After stage five:
1. Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek): 143 points
2. Biniam Girmay (NSN): 79
3. Max Kanter (XDS Astana): 77
4. Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech): 72
5. Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM Team): 70
6. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG): 55
7. Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step): 55
8. Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek): 45
9. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike): 44
10. Isaac Del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG): 39
King of the Mountains
With a maximum of 33 points availabe today, this will get a thorough shake-up.
1. Alex Baudin (EF Education-EasyPost): 12
2. Alex Molenaar (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA): 10
3. Nicolas Prodhomme (Decathlon CMA CGM): 9
4. Raul Garcia Pierna (Movistar): 7
5. Marco Frigo (NSN): 5
6. Jan Tratnik (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe): 5
7. Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates-XRG): 4
8. Vlad Van Mechelen (Bahrain Victorious): 4
9. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG): 3
10. Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek): 3
General classification standings
After stage five:
1. Torstein Træen (Uno-X Mobility): 16hrs 32min 07secs
2. Sean Quinn (EF Education-EasyPost): +28secs
3. Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek): +3mins 50secs
4. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG): +7min 53secs
5. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) +7min 53secs
6. Ramses Debruyne (Alpecin-Premier Tech): +8min 6secs
7. Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe): +8min 16secs
8. Isaac Del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG): +8min 17secs
9. Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek): +8min 20secs
10. Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM): +8min 41secs
Preamble
The Tour de France is heating up and I don’t just mean the barmy temperatures the bunch is coping with in south-western France.
This is likely to be the stage which yields the biggest differences of the 2026 edition’s opening week. Included in the final 70 kilometres are the first-category Col d’Aspin, hors categorie Col du Tourmalet and long drag to the finish at Gavarnie-Gèdre, just beneath the majestic Cirque de Gavarnie. Helicopter telly cameras will have a field day with that one.
The Tourmalet is one of this race’s iconic climbs. In 1910, during its first inclusion, Octave Lapize shouted “Assassins!, at the commissaires at the col top after pushing his bike there in a “pitiable” state. You can tell the Tour was invented and run by journalists: after such drama, the race had to keep going back.
Its last 13 kilometres rarely go under the eight per cent mark. We will hopefully see action in the race for the yellow jersey between Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike). They had a ding-dong battle up this Pyrenean pest in 2023 and maybe even 19-year-old ingenu Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) can join their party this time round. Have a gander at the stage profile:
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Another ponderable is whether Torstein Træen, the cancer survivor in the maillot jaune, can hold onto the race lead. Unless the Uno-X Mobility climber has a bad day and/or the race favourites give it full beans, I reckon he will. That jersey gives a lot of riders wings and added motivation. American Sean Quinn is a readier challenger to worry about, just 28 seconds in arrears.
As for the stage win? Certainly not one for yesterday’s winner Olav Kooij or green jersey wearer Mads Pedersen. It might go to the strongest climber from the breakaway which will surely go away in the first hour or two on the flat roads out of Pau. Especially if the bunch knocks off their early effort in broiling temperatures going as high as 40 degrees Celsius. Sacrebleu!
We’re closing on the stage start at 11:25 BST, so please do let me know your predictions, tangents, snack choices, earmworm songs or musings on today’s stage via the email link at the top of the page. Allez!
