In a press conference on the rest day of the Tour de France, Jonas Vingegaard of team Visma-Lease a Bike has hit back at Remco Evenepoel's accusations regarding his racing tactics during Sunday's gravel stage. Vingegaard, who suffered serious injuries earlier this year, defended his approach, stating that he was focused on riding smart and minimizing time losses.

During the gravel stage near Troyes, Vingegaard and his team adopted a defensive strategy, aiming to avoid any unnecessary risks. He specifically wanted to limit any confrontation with his major rivals, especially Tadej Pogačar. Although Pogačar and Evenepoel attempted various attacks on the gravel roads, Vingegaard responded but refrained from collaborating with them to distance other general classification (GC) riders.

Evenepoel's long-range attack with 77 km to go saw Pogačar and Vingegaard joining him, but the Danish rider chose not to cooperate. Vingegaard later caught up with Pogačar with the help of teammate Matteo Jorgenson, leaving Evenepoel and Primož Roglič behind. However, Vingegaard still refused to work with Pogačar, leading to disappointment expressed by Evenepoel about the missed opportunity.

Addressing Evenepoel's accusation of a lack of courage, Vingegaard firmly stated that his focus was on not losing time and riding smartly. He explained that joining the attacks could have risked compromising his position in the Tour. Vingegaard's injuries earlier this year played a role in his cautious approach, and he highlighted that he had only trained seriously for six weeks leading up to the race.

Currently, Vingegaard is 1 minute and 15 seconds behind Pogačar in the GC standings, with Evenepoel trailing by 33 seconds. Roglič holds the fourth position overall with a time gap of 1 minute and 36 seconds. Vingegaard remains hopeful about finding his best form in the final week of the Tour, potentially capitalizing on Pogačar's expected fatigue.

Despite Pogačar's aggressive attempts to gain time on Vingegaard, the Danish rider does not consider him as his sole rival. Vingegaard expressed wariness of the entire top 10 and emphasized the advantage of having multiple rivals, indicating that they may be able to work together to make the race more challenging.

As the Tour progresses, Vingegaard's performance and ability to control Pogačar's aggression will be closely watched. With uncertainties regarding how much time he can afford to lose and the upcoming final time trial, Vingegaard remains cautious but trusts in his team's plan. Regardless of the outcome, Vingegaard acknowledged that life goes on and that the crash earlier this year has significantly changed his perspective.

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