Vingegaard clings to past Tour de France glory in the face of almighty Pogačar
This is Pogačar's race to lose as the final week looms
What a difference a week has made at the Tour de France.
Last Monday, on the first rest day, the art of mind games and tactical bluffs dominated the press conferences of the big four as they jostled for advantages and looked to offload pressure onto one another.
A week on, the big four have become a prevailing trio, and the gaps between Tadej Pogačar, Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel have spread from around a minute to a chasmic 3:09 and 5:19 respectively.
No wonder Pogačar, fresh from two exhilarating and utterly dominant mountain performances, had the broadest smile of three podium riders when he met with the media on Monday afternoon.
He is now over three minutes clear of the defiant - and not yet defeated - Vingegaard, with Remco Evenepoel a further two minutes back. The remaining rivals are in an entirely different race, cut adrift from the powerhouses that will decide the final podium in Nice unless a crash or COVID strikes.
Read more: What does abandoning the Tour de France mean for Primož Roglič, his team, and the race?