The 2025 Tour de France route sounds good to Tadej Pogačar: “It’ll be pretty brutal.”

The 2025 Tour de France route was unveiled in Paris on Tuesday. Tadej Pogačar was on vacation at a beach in the Seychelles at the time. He seems to like the mountainous path and even going back to the Col de la Loze.

PogaÍar reportedly told L’Equipe about the course before his vacation that it was “pretty brutal,” but he was quick to point out that he had won the Tour three times on similar terrain.

Jonas Vingegaard had a rough time after coming back too quickly from a major injury, but Pogačar won the 2024 Tour de France with a strong performance from start to finish. The big rivals were beaten by PogaÍar by 6:27, and Remco Evenepoel came in third, a long way behind in 9:18.

His UAE Team Emirates team hasn’t said what their main goals are for 2025 yet. But winning a fourth Tour seems to be the most important thing right now. The Vuelta a España might come next.

The Tour de France 2025 has mountain top finishes at Hautacam, Superbagnères, Mont Ventoux, the Col de la Loze, and La Plagne. It also has an 11-kilometer mountain time trial up to Peyragudes in the Pyrenees. The first week gives the sprinters chances, but there are also a few steep finishes that give PogaÍar chances to attack.

The first week is long and takes place in the north of France. That sounds like a lot of fun! There are some tough stages and a 33 km time trial that looks really good,” a happy Pogačar said.

“Then we’ll go across France and into the Pyrenees. Our first day off will be in Toulouse, and then we’ll attack some nice stages.”

There’s a hill in the Peyragudes time trial that I’ve never done before, but I really enjoy it. Things should go well in the Pyrenees, but I have had good luck there before.

On 2021’s Mont Ventoux, Vingegaard briefly pulled ahead of Pogačar, but Pogačar closed the gap and went on to win the Tour by 5:20. It looks like the Slovenian wants to go after the Géant de Provence in 2025, but he is afraid of it.

“The climb to Mont Ventoux is very hard; it’s only for experienced climbers,” PogaÍar said. There’s nothing else like that climb for me. After the second rest day, it will be even more interesting to see what happens.

Pogaëar famously lost it on the Col de la Loze during the 2023 Tour de France and told race radio, “I’m gone, I’m dead.” When stage 18 goes up to the 2,304-meter-high summit via Courchevel and a 26.2 km climb at 6.5% in 2025, he might be able to erase that moment of loss.

No matter what, the Alps are tough. Because it has so much rising, the stage to the Col de la Loze might be called the Queen stage.

PogaÍar said of the hill and the whole 2025 Tour de France, “I think it’ll be brutal.”

With UAE Team Emirates, PogaÍar just signed a new deal that keeps him there until 2030. After six years of racing with the team, he still looks like he wants to win.

It’s in his nature to compete. I don’t see why he couldn’t get inspired again after working hard for five years. Besides, the land is good for him, right?” L’Équipe was told by Bernard Hinault.

After a great season in 2024, UAE Team Emirates is sure that Pogaëar is still driven.

“It’s not easy to repeat what was a very special and great season for the whole team.” Andrej Hauptman, the director of sports, told L’Equipe, “I’m not worried about Tadej.”

He’s always been one of the best at getting himself going and setting new goals. I’ve known him since he was a junior. Someone unique, because he’ll try to do something unexpected even in a small, flat race that doesn’t suit him.

We have to tell him not to run sometimes! Perhaps he’ll want to win a race even more if it doesn’t fit him at all.

Farrand, Stephen