Stage 19

The road

At the start

Across the Landes to Libourne

Luz Ardiden closed the mountains, and Pogačar leaves the Pyrenees in yellow, in polka dots and in white, 5:45 up on Vingegaard and 5:51 on Carapaz. Michael Woods and Miguel Ángel López do not start. Today is 207 flat kilometres from Mourenx — where Merckx arrived eight minutes clear in 1969 — to Libourne, and the peloton is tired enough to let the break go.

How it was won

1. 1100 km to go

   Twenty out front

   After a chaotic opening the chasers finally make it across with 100km to go, and the moment they do the peloton's will breaks. Ineos ride for fifteen more kilometres, watch the gap only grow, and sit up.

2. 244 km to go

   The break starts fighting

   Ten minutes clear and entirely irrelevant to the general classification, the escape turns on itself with 44km left. Gesbert starts it; Rutsch and Ballerini keep it going in a constant churn of attack and counter.

3. 325 km to go

   Mohorič hits out

   Politt accelerates on an incline with just over 25km to go, and as the road flattens and the group falls into a lull, Mohorič goes. Thirty seconds arrive almost at once. Behind him they attack each other over and over, and every time the effort dissolves into another lull — which is exactly what he is counting on.

4. 4At the line

   Libourne

   Mohorič takes his second stage of this Tour after 25km alone, then crosses the line miming a zip across his mouth — two days after French police searched his team's rooms.

The result