Watch: Tadej Pogacar blows past riders to set Tour de France record

Pogacar reached a max speed of 23.9 mph during his incredible ascent on Galibier. He then maintained an average speed of 14.9 mph to race to the finish line, with none of his competitors in sight.  

According to the Tour's official data, Pogacar shattered a previous King of the Mountain (KOM) record with his average speed on the Galibier ascent.  

After his incredible showing, Pogacar revealed his team's (UAE Team Emirates) strategy was to set him up for the final descent and the plan was executed to perfection.

"I didn't want to go too early because of the wind," Pogacar said of his attack close to the Galibier summit. "So I had to make all the difference in the last few hundred meters. And then going downhill, I was little surprised to see wet roads in a few corners. It was a bit scary since that descent is super fast. But if you know the road, it helps."

Indeed. Pogacar knows the hallowed terrains of Galibier all too well. He similarly used the KOM stages to leave his imprint on the Tour during his 2020 and 2021 wins. 

Despite failing to win the Tour in 2022 and 2023, Pogacar walked into this year's event as the overwhelming favorite in light of his dominating showing at the Giro d'Italia in May, so much so that Groupama FDJ team manager Marc Madiot predicted him to "kill" the race within the opening week.

While Pogacar hasn't done that yet, he has a healthy lead for the yellow jersey over Evenepoel (+45 seconds) and reigning champion Vingegaard (+50 seconds).