Tadej Pogacar says long-range attack on Stage 12 of Tour de France sparked by UAE Team Emirates-XRG team-mate Jhonatan Narvaez happened by accident
Updated 18/07/2025 at 10:04 GMT+1
Defending champion Tadej Pogacar claimed the yellow jersey and a healthy lead at the top of the general classification on Stage 12 of the Tour de France - but he revealed a misunderstood team joke left him stunned as his teammate Jhonatan Narvaez led a heroic launch for the line with 11km remaining on the route to Hautacam. You can watch all the action from Le Tour on TNT Sports and discovery+.
'We were joking' - Pogacar reveals early Narvaez lead-out was unplanned
Video credit: TNT Sports
Tour de France leader Tadej Pogacar has revealed that his UAE Team Emirates-XRG team-mate Jhonatan Narvaez’s impressive launch towards the finish line on Stage 12 was the result of a misunderstood joke.
The Ecuadorian pushed on with 11km remaining in support of Pogacar’s pursuit of the yellow jersey.
Pogacar, who laid his previous Hautacam demons to rest with victory, admitted he was taken aback by Narvaez’s sudden burst, which left their rivals dumbstruck.
Although the defending champion revealed the team had spoken about Narvaez leading them out, it was supposed to be taken in jest.
"I don’t know if Jhonny understands well, but we were joking," Pogacar said. "I was not expecting that we would really do this.
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'The smiling assassin!' - Pogacar soars to sublime Stage 12 victory at Tour de France
Video credit: TNT Sports
"I guess Jhonny doesn’t take jokes and he launched it super hard," Pogacar said at the end of Stage 12.
"My microphone was not working so I could not say anything, so I was like ‘ok, I follow Jhonny’ and, yeah, we went and then I committed.
"Then, when I saw it was so long to go, I was like ‘ok’. It was similar three years ago. I was alone suffering the last 10km so better to be in the front in the lead and suffering than on the back foot.
"I was happy with the ride and I managed to come to the top with a good gap."
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Pogacar’s victory saw him take charge of the yellow jersey with a 3’31" lead over Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) in second.
Despite a mislaid joke giving them a tough drive for glory on Stage 12, the Slovenian thinks the togetherness they are showing stands them in good stead to dominate from this point forward.
"If we ride as a team as strong as we did today, I think we should be looking forward for the next days," he said.
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