Was it a 'flex'? UAE Team Emirates-XRG tactics spark debate after Mathieu van der Poel victory on Stage 9 of Tour de France 2026
Published 12/07/2026 at 19:21 GMT+1
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The tactics of UAE Team Emirates-XRG during Stage 9 of the Tour de France sparked debate among TNT Sports' Breakaway experts after Alpecin-Premier Tech's Mathieu van der Poel sealed a memorable victory in Ussel on Sunday.
'Hurt a lot of legs' - UAE's game plan discussed as Breakaway team disagrees on strategy
Video credit: TNT Sports
The Dutchman proved too strong for a four-man breakaway, with Tobias Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) and Tom Pidcock (Pinarello-Q36.5) finishing second and third respectively.
UAE spent much of the stage driving the peloton through Tim Wellens and Felix Grossschartner, seemingly setting up yellow jersey Tadej Pogacar for a late bid for the victory.
However, there was also suspicion that the defending champion's team were simply attempting to make the race as difficult as possible for their rivals. Pogacar eventually finished 11th, while comfortably retaining the maillot jaune, 2'42'' ahead of Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike).
Jonathan Vaughters, chief of EF Education-EasyPost, admitted he had ”no idea” what UAE's game plan was.
Speaking on The Breakaway, he continued: ”That being said, do I think they hurt a lot of legs out there? Yeah. Psychologically when you’re in the front like that, you’re dishing out the pain rather than receiving it.
”Even if you are technically expending more energy, psychologically it just feels really nice to come out of every single corner and stretch out the group.
”Look at Red Bull [-Bora-Hansgrohe], they had two riders, their two leaders, that was all they had in that group.
”It was a flex. I think they almost enjoyed hurting a lot of legs. When the train got a little bit easier they stopped and let someone else take it over.
”But what they effectively did, one way or the other by keeping that gap close, they kept the race hard all day long.”
However, Robbie McEwen disagreed with that assessment. ”I don't think it's a thing to go out in the Tour de France and just ride to make others tired,” he said.
”They were riding with an actual purpose. It looked like they were going to try and win the stage and chase it down because you don't ride that hard if you're not trying to win."
Adam Blythe offered another perspective. "I think fatigue," he said.
"I think they are so strong. If you look at who they were using today, it was Tim Wellens and Felix Grosschartner for a little bit; the other guys sat on the wheels."
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Pogacar was asked to explain UAE's tactics in his post-race interview with Eurosport/TNT Sports.
"The break had a bit over one minute," Pogacar said. "When finally we were over with the climbs we were thinking to go just to the finish with the team. Then other teams come and start to chase. Actually, it was a good day for us."
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