Pogacar detonates Alpe d’Huez with a monster solo to win Stage 19

Tadej Pogacar produced one of the defining rides of his career on Stage 19, launching a ferocious solo attack from the base of Alpe d’Huez and storming past the remnants of the breakaway to take another emphatic Tour de France stage victory.

Starting the climb more than three minutes behind the leaders, Pogacar rode the entire ascent alone after losing his last teammate. He hunted down Richard Carapaz and Lenny Martinez inside the final 1.5km, swept straight past them, and powered to his fifth stage win of the 2026 Tour — and the 26th of his career.

Tadej Pogacar takes the ALL-TIME Alpe d’Huez record with a STAGGERING time of 35 minutes and 27 seconds beating Marco Pantani's record.

Martinez crossed the line six seconds behind, with Carapaz nine seconds back after his own heroics on Stage 18. Sepp Kuss, who had been part of the front group earlier, faded on the upper slopes and finished over a minute down.

The victory pushes Pogacar’s overall advantage to 7:11 over Remco Evenepoel, placing him on the brink of joining cycling’s most elite club: Merckx, Indurain, Anquetil, and Hinault — the only riders to win five Tours. With two stages left and only disaster capable of stopping him, the Slovenian is poised to be crowned on the Champs-Élysées on Sunday.

VIDEO: 2026 Tour de France Stage 19 Highlights