Tadej Pogacar won the Criterium du Dauphine after a week in which he immediately showed his superiority. There were eight racing days and 3 stage victories conquered by the Slovenian. Only in the time trial did Pogacar demonstrate that he was slightly behind Evenepoel and Vingegaard, the two direct rivals he will face again in a few weeks at the Tour de France.

"This is a victory that certainly helps morale and is a motivation for the Tour because it is the most important objective of the season - Pogacar commented after the last stage finish - I think it's a mental boost for the entire team. And winning is always something that helps."

All the top riders in this Dauphine have taken their respective measurements and understood their preparation level. Tadej Pogacar is undoubtedly ahead of his competitors, and once again made the difference on the climbs.

"We'll see in the coming weeks what kind of progress I'll be able to make ahead of the Tour. First, I'll focus on getting good rest, then perhaps we'll think a bit about the time trial, and for the rest, I don't think we should rush anything."

Pogacar will go to altitude training before the Tour de France, accompanied by the team that will support him in the yellow race. His intention, naturally, is to win his fourth Tour, and looking at his current level, he is the number one favorite to win.

"After the time trial, I wasn't certain I would finish today with the yellow jersey. The time trial gave significant gaps, but I also knew we would have a challenging weekend. When I looked at the profile of the stages on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, I understood they would be tough days for everyone, but when we actually rode them, it was even harder than I had imagined. So when you have such a demanding weekend, anyone can lose ground in the standings."

The Slovenian will not participate in the national championships because he will be engaged in altitude training in Isola 2000. "Unfortunately, I won't be able to race in the national championships. We'll be in Isola and we'll stay for quite a long period, so they won't be part of my program. For me, it was an objective and a dream to have the bands and the Slovenian jersey on my shoulders. For now, I wear the world champion jersey, but I'll have to wait another year to win the national champion jersey if I no longer have the rainbow-striped jersey."